Sweet Reveries
by Aeyvi Allen Poe
Summary: Ever wondered what Shadow's childhood was like? Well, this is his bildungsroman. The birth, life, love and hate of Shadow, and how Maria acted as his surrogate mother. Much cuteness. Eventual lemonyness.
1. The Beginning

(( HA! Thought you wouldn't be seeing ME again, would you? Well, here I am! On my OWN computer! With which I am free to do what I please! And if what I please is writing a Sonadow, then sobeit!

Shadow: there she goes again….. Sonic, hand me that aluminum bat…..

A: OH NO YOU DON'T! Else I shall do…….. THIS!

: Sonic and Shadow kiss passionately, the latter squeezing the former's ass….:

Sonic: OH GOD NO!

Sh: ANYTHING! ANYTHING BUT THAAAAT!

Espio: HAVE MERCY ON OUR EYES!

Knuckles: GRAAAAAAAPES!

A: now, I shall have no more violence directed towards me.

Sn::sobbing: we're sorry::sobs again:

A: unfortunately, I've been stewing some different subs in my head for awhile… what is a sub, you ask? Why, it's something like a fic on my fic- an alternate storyline using the same characters (possibly even corresponding to the original storyline). This is why I started writing this! I was thinking about doing this for awhile now, and I'm pulping this out off the top of my head being that all I've thought out on this are maybe a couple character advocacies. They were inadvertent too. Anyway, I was daydreaming whilst typing some script and suddenly, I had created a new character!

Sn: another female, I'll bet.

A: shaddap. Twas an accident. I happen to like female characters….

K: I will not comment on that statement. :coughs:

A: and you'll see her described in the following sub/excerpt/piece of text/document. I don't think it's an actual fic. It may develop into such. Who knows? I'm off on a tangent, so we'll see what unfolds…

;:; Shadow:: humming happily to himself very OOCly: wha? Oh. Right. On behalf of Disneyland, I would like to announce Aeyvi Allen Poe does not own me. Or Sonic. Or anybody else that she has not devised. That is all. ……… why Disneyland though? ;:;

Chapter 1- The Beginning

Through the expanse of time and the cold vacuum of space, we revisit a familiar scene… now only living in memory… his memory…

The events that occurred before his violent detachment with his past still live in the recesses of his intricate cerebrum, whispering to him from time to time… hinting at what he once was….

Let us take a look, then, at this other world long gone; now living only through this particular hedgehog's grey matter….

The lights over the laboratory burned a stagnant white as the good doctor was hard at work.

"Doctor?"

He turned from his recent creation, pulling the paper mouth mask from his face.

"What? I'm busy."

The girl wound a lock of blonde hair around a finger timidly.

"Project Shadow… were you going to activate it?"

"All in due time, you'll see. This project, I'm afraid, is more important."

The girl peered over his shoulder as he returned to his test tubes.

"Which is that?"

"It is none of your concern at the moment. You are in charge of project Shadow. That is your only concern."

She was silent, looking at her sterile shoes for a moment in thought.

"My… only concern?"

"Until I say otherwise, yes. You're to oversee his training, education, diet, his general wellbeing. Do you understand?"

"Yes, but… until he's activated…"

He sighed angrily, setting a glass beaker down.

"Go and monitor his vitals. I'll activate him at 1600."

"Yes, sir." She nodded, turned on her heel and left.

Maria was no older than seventeen at the time. She had only recently graduated her basic training for life on the station, and she was close to achieving her degree in gene manipulation and the results thereof. It had been a harrowing course, and the experiments she had done during it were still freshly sickening in her mind. Still, this was the life she had been given. If not for her grandfather…

She looked down at the small black form in its little capsule. He was just so adorable, she couldn't imagine him being created for destruction… he wouldn't, she thought. Not if she could help it.

"I'll teach you what really matters….." she cooed, touching the glass. "Just you wait…"

-o-

The fluid drained around the infant as Gerald readied the capsule for opening. Maria stood close by, folded blanket in hand. She'd found a baby blue one special for the occasion. He was a boy, after all…

The first thing he felt was warm hands lifting him, the softness of the blanket engulfing him. He took his first breath as he was caressed, and for the first time, opened those big red eyes….

Maria smiled down at the tiny hedgehog, feeling a tear stinging at her eye. She had no idea what would make her cry at that moment…. She felt as if she were looking down at her own newborn child. A wave of warmth spread her cheeks, and she felt her heart skip a beat.

"…. Hi, Shadow. I'm….I'm Maria."

He blinked at this, eyes wide with wonder and interest. She rocked him slightly as he was in her arms…..

"Alright then. Take him to your quarters. You'll have to take close care of him till he can walk and be trusted with his own room."

"Yes, Doctor."

The newborn gurgled his first sounds of awe as they passed beneath the green shade of the master atrium. Maria couldn't help but smile as she stepped nimbly from stepping stone to stepping stone. She had helped design the atrium, after all, and many of her hybrid projects lived there. Orchids hung elaborately from tropical trees, cherry trees hung laden with genetically advanced fruit… But by far her favorite part of the lush oasis was the square structure in the middle of it. Her own private apartment. The grey box-like house was surrounded on three sides by large, full lilac bushes in full bloom.

"Look, Shadow! This is your new home for awhile. I had a cradle put in for you and everything! You're gonna love it here…"

The baby blinked up at her in reply.

She melted all over again, looking into those huge, watery eyes.

"They gave you beautiful eyes, didn't they?" she touched his little nose with a finger, scrunching up her face at him. He giggled, reaching up and grabbing her finger with his tiny hands.

She stood there at her door for a moment, rocking the infant in her arms, feeling a strange, strong affection for this small stranger. This, she thought, was the beginning of her new life… as a mother.

-o-

The first cry the child emitted made her heart break. She scooped him from his crib in an instant, warm bottle at the ready. She fed him carefully, swaying back and forth to calm him.

"shh… Shadow, it's all right…. Maria's here…."

He weakly pushed the bottle from his mouth, causing the formula to spill all over his little face, and evoking a new wail of distress.

"Oh, silly, you have to eat!" she hugged the babe closer, feeling like shedding a few tears herself.

"You want me to sing? Is that it?"

She wiped his mouth and chubby little cheeks with a corner of the blanket. He sobbed, rubbing at his eyes carelessly.

"My mom used to sing this one to me…. If… if I can still remember it…."

She hummed the first few bars as the words came back to her.

"Hearts call…. Hearts fall…

Somewhere in the rain

Who knows?

Life grows…

Hollow and so vain…

Wandering in the winter light

The wicked and the sane

Bear witness to salvation

And life starts over again….."

Already the child had quieted, sup-supping every now and then.

"Now the blue skies are all around you…

aaahhh…..aaahhhh…..

Love's shadow will surround you

All through the night….

Star shining in the twilight…

Tell me true

Hope whispers and I will follow

Till you…

Love me….

Too……."

She had closed her eyes to recall the last few notes, and as she slowed her swaying and looked down, she realized he had fallen asleep.

A motherly smile tugged at the sides of her mouth, she bit her lip to keep from giggling. He was just so adorable when he slept…. Like a little black angel. She smoothed his baby-soft quills, petting his cheek with a finger. Never had she felt such a strange attachment, such a connection to anything as strong as this. She felt she would die before she gave him up.

Maria shook her head. Silly girl and her silly little dramatics. 'You've got to grow up, you know. You have a child to set an example for now…'

She laid him gently in his crib, pulling his blue blankie to his chin. She stood there for a moment longer, leaning on the railing and gazing warmly down at her new responsibility.

"Goodnight, Shadow. I know you're going to be waking me up again in two hours, but goodnight anyway…." She hopped on her small bed, watching the infant sleep for a moment longer, then flicked the light.

-o-

"At last…."

The doctor gazed down at his newest creation. Of course, this one wouldn't have powers anywhere near as powerful as Shadow's, but it would definitely serve its purpose.

He pulled a small voice recorder from an inner pocket, pressing in the red button.

"January seven, oh-four hundred hours, Project Eidola. Status: complete. Vitals are strong. Only setback, there was a drastic change in its pigment in the last five hours of embryo development. A chemical reaction in the fluid caused its fur to change from black to red. Note for future experiments- disclude any francium or phosphorus from the artificial embryonic fluid."

He walked around the capsule, smiling at his work.

"Weight- fifteen ounces. Length from head to tail- one foot, two inches. Fur color- red with black rings around certain quills. Eyecolor- amber. Gender……." He paused in his pacing, a smirk crossing his cold features. "…female."

((ahh! And we have the beginnings of a plot! Well, I think I'd like to continue! Don't try to strangle me for abandoning Life As Lived for the moment. I just have an idea, neh. Leave us be. Anywhelp, review and I'll try to update as soon as I have the chance! Chaoness.))

Sn: awwh! Widdle chibified Shady-wady:: pinches Shadow's cheeks:

Sh::punches Sonic squarely in the teeth: WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT TOUCHING ME?

Sn::spitting a tooth: don't do it?

Sh: EEEEEXACTLY!

K: ……grapes. Boy this joke is getting old.


	2. Motherhood

((as you can see, I decided to continue this sub… which may or may not be evolving into a full-blown fic already. Anyway, I have my mood music playing (a collection of ambient/newage/opera) and I'm all set for some heartfelt gushiness. Be prepared to awwwh.))

Sonic: like in the last chappy, awwh!

Shadow:sniffling: Maria……. Wait, who's she:punches Sonic again for no apparent reason: ah, I feel better now.

Sn: X.x itai…..

Knuckles: and grapes, for that matter.

Mighty: yes grapes. Why am I commenting?

: Sonic: I hate this fic. First, because I'm NOWHERE in it, and second because it's all about….. HIM! Oh, and Aeyvi doesn't own me, neh.:

_Chapter Two- Motherhood_

Maria silently thanked the technology that allowed Shadow to have been activated at the same maturity as an infant four months old as opposed to starting from day zero. Then again, he was more capable of his more violent tantrums at this stage…

The poor girl had searched the base twice over for a pacifier. Such a simple thing should be easy to find, right? They'd had more than their share of human babies born on base, so logically such a thing should be rather common by now. No such luck.

"A what?"

"A pacifier. That's all I ask. He… he just won't stop….." Maria was on the verge of tears, shouting over the shill cries of the baby to her grandfather.

"I'll not hear another word of it! He is a weapon, Maria! And a rodent at that! I will not have such a desecration to the human race in MY station!"

"YOUR station?"

"YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN! Now get that… THING out of my lab this instant! It's giving me a headache!"

The poor girl's bottom lip began to quiver as the old man turned his back on her. She took a deep, wavering breath and turned back the way she had come.

"Shadow….. if only I'd known what a PAIN you were going to be….."

He only wailed in reply, kicking fitfully.

She coughed a sob in frustration, continuing her trek down the corridor.

-o-

She'd sung him at least a fifty different lullabies over the past week and a half. She was beginning to run out of ideas. Stuffing the soft rubber nipple of a bottle into his mouth, she began to pace as he struggled to get the offending thing out.

"I'm too young to be a mother. I was hoping to wait 'till at least twenty. And then YOU…."

"Mrrf…" he protested, formula bubbling at the sides of his mouth. She had to laugh at the blatant glare he was giving her.

"Oh, I see how it is. You think you're the one putting up with ME!"

His little eyes narrowed as he managed to shove the bottle from his face. He just lay there for a moment in angry silence, looking away from her.

"Are you going to stop crying, then?"

"Huff."

She giggled, setting him in his crib.

"Is that a yes?"

He snapped his head back to look at her, a sneer crossing his delicate chubby face.

"No need to get cranky, now…. All I do is feed you, sing you to sleep, change your diapers…."

The babe gave a low growl as he turned on his side, giving her the cold shoulder.

"I don't believe I've ever heard a baby growl before….. that's a new one…."

-o-

Dr. Gerald- as he preferred to be addressed- was busily typing commands into his various delicate equipment, jotting down a note now and then.

In a small metal cradle on a pedestal in the middle of the lab, there lay his most recent accomplishment. And docile as a cat, he thought to himself, smiling. Poor Maria. At least HE didn't have to put up with the constant wailing and the hourly feeding. This one was being nourished intravenously at the moment, and was under some moderate sedative.

The small hedgehog opened her golden eyes sleepily, blinking painfully in the bright incandescent lights. She rubbed at an eye with a tiny red fist, yawning.

"You're awake?" the doctor asked aloud as he heard this, turning to regard her with his bushy-eyebrowed frown.

She only stared half-mastedly, the dazzling metallic luster of her amber eyes shining against scarlet lids like hidden treasure.

"Ahh, maybe you weren't such a failure after all, eh?" he stooped over her, petting her quills as one would a small dog.

"You'll make a nice pet, I daresay. Not use to me much otherwise, but a nice pet indeed."

She rubbed back against his hand weakly, dropping slowly into induced slumber.

"A pet….. until you've grown that is. Then…. Then, pet, you'll find your true purpose. You'll see. You'll see…."

He turned back to his work, smiling as he was quite pleased with his creation.

-o-

It wasn't until the middle of the night- of course- that little Shadow began to wail again.

Maria stumbled from her bed in groggy habit, pulling a fresh bottle from its electric warmer.

"Shush, it's alright…." She soothed, taking him into her arms and offering the bottle to a hungry little mouth.

"Finally, you're eating on your own. I guess starving yourself did the trick…"

She swayed there for a moment, waiting for him to satiate himself. To her surprise he suddenly grasped the bottle with both tiny black hands and flung it across the room.

He then began to wail afresh.

"What is WRONG with you? You won't eat, you hardly sleep, and you keep… CRYING!"

His struggling was making it hard to keep hold of him, and, to her horror, he slipped from her arms head first….

She cringed at the sickening dull thump of his small head against the thin carpet.

What scared her further was that he'd stopped crying.

"Shadow! Shadow, oh, I'm so sorry! Are you alright? Shadow?"

He just looked up at her blankly, a little bored even, popping a thumb in his mouth and sucking studiously.

She tried to quiet her hyperventilation, picking him back up hastily and hugging him to her chest.

"You scared me…… I guess they made you hardier than I thought…."

She laid him back in his crib, expecting him to quietly drift off to sleep as he'd done before.

Unfortunately, he caught sight of his bottle across the room and decided he was hungry after all.

And he began to cry again.

Maria, sleep deprived and now losing her temper, decided: to hell with it. She marched over to her stereo and turned on some music to drown him out. The sweet harmony of The Beatles filled the small apartment.

"Let's all get up and dance to a song that was a hit before your mother was born…"

Strangely enough, the child fell silent, little ears perking up at the strange new sound.

"Though she was born a long, long time ago…. Your mother should know….."

Maria had already gotten back in bed, pulled the covers over her head and sighed heavily, now finally able to get some rest.

At exactly seven hundred hours ARK time, the vitamin D lamps flickered on over the damp, genetically-enhanced, indoor rainforest, shining brightly into the young scientist's widows.

"Lemme skip the first class… comeon…. It's only astrophysics….. it's a breeze, I'll catch up later….." she mumbled into her soft pillow.

"Uh!" replied a high voice.

"No, the teacher likes me, he won't mind……" she continued.

A loud crash brought her into a stark-straight sitting position, hand to disheveled blonde hair as she breathed a gasp through her nose.

"What? Why?"

She looked to the floor only to see a tiny hedgehog reaching for the bottle heater with all his tiny might, already having knocked a picture frame from the short nightstand.

"Shadow! No! Bad! BAD!"

He ignored her, finally managing to pull the whole contraption on top of him.

She grumbled, plucking him from under it, striding across the room and depositing him in his crib.

"Wait…. How did you get out?"

"uh." He explained.

"If you're going to say something, say it! Maria." She put her hands to her chest in example. "I'm Maria. Maah-reee-aah."

"Muh!" he said happily, copying her motions and placing his hands at his own chest.

"Noo, you're Shadow." She touched a finger to his nose. "Shaaa-dow."

"Shhh…." Was all he could manage.

"Maah-ree-aaah." This said with her hands to her chest.

"Muh! Muh!"

"Maaaah…..reeeeeee…..aaaaahh"

"Muh muh muh. Ma. Mooo….."

"No, not moo….Maaaahreeeaaah"

"Maaaaaa….. mama."

Maria giggled. It was just too cute.

"Mamamamamamamamaaaaa…. Mumuh!"

"Oh, lord. Now I've got you started…." She shook her head, smiling as she walked back to the mess he'd made. She picked up a bottle which he had knocked from its holder.

"MAAAAA!"

"You want this?" she pointed to it.

"AH!"

"Bottle."

"……Baaaa! BAAA! Baba…." He wiggled his little fingers through the bars for it.

She sighed, walking back to his crib to take him in her arms. He squirmed violently, closing his mouth and turning away as she tried to feed him.

"What's your problem? You said you wanted the bottle…"

He frowned up at her, snatching said bottle from her grasp and shoving the business end in his mouth angrily.

"Oh, I see. It's embarrassing to be fed. Little mister independence…. You just sit there and feed yourself, then." She set him back in his crib as he suckled happily away.

((ok, I don't have time for much more so enjoy what I've given you and DON'T VOTE FOR BUSH! HE'S A GENETICALLY-ALTERED ROBOT MONKEY! I have honest sources. Good evening.))


	3. Attachment

((since I've been so bold lately- what with the introductions of my original work on fictionpress and my newest fic, I have both decided to continue this fic AND release a short story in the near future: "Fahrenheit Rouge". You'll just have to see if the title isn't obvious enough. Anyway, I have several very good ideas for this recently-certified fic. Yes, it is now a fic. Anyway, let's have some character comments and get this thing rolling.))

Sonic:-singing along with his new favorite song- They call meh Sonic! I amfaster than sound- I keep jumping around! Blue hedgehog Sonic! With incredible speed I keep movin' mah feet! -breakdances-

Knuckles: I can't stand techno…..

Shadow: MY story…. MINE…. I'M the main character… NOT HIM……

Maria: technically, I'M the main character at the moment, so watch your mouth, young man!

Sh: ……. Who's she?

Sn: Blue hedgehog Sonic!

K: WE KNOW!

Espio: WE CAN SEEE. CLEARLY.

Sn: STOP SPEAKING IN CAPS, THEN.

E&K: ALRIGHTY.

A: okaaay…. onto my ficlet.

Manic: oooh I wish I were an Oscar-Meyer wiener…… -Gets suckerpunched-

Sh: my story….. :ahem: Sonicteam owns us, not Aeyvi. She owns anything she creates in this fic- which is a US grade A certified fic with adoption papers and a green card and-

A: thank you, Shadow.

Sh: no problem. -peace sign-

_Chapter 3- Attachment_

"….And as you can see the results in factor D have completely different chromosome structures than in C. As we zoom in to look at the double helix…." droned the teacher to the advanced genetics class as he flicked through some slides on the holographic projector.

"I can't WAIT for graduation." Junie, Maria's lab partner groaned, resting her elbow on their shared desk.

The class consisted of mainly college graduate aged to almost middle-aged lab personnel that lived on the station, and this class was the final stage in education needed for the advanced experimentation and implementation of genetic manipulation. And only four days till graduation….

Shadow simpered quietly to himself in boredom, tucked snugly in his little carrier under the desk. Junie peeked under and made a face at him.

"How come you get all the fun assignments? He's so cute!"

"…..Fun? how about I wake you up and two, four, and six in the morning and YOU can feed him and change his diapers and YOU see how 'fun' it is. I'd be HAPPY to lend him to you."

"You would? 'Cause Kordon might find that sexy, y'know, the whole maternal thing…"

"Oh, you and Kordon! How the hell would a baby spitting up on you be sexy in ANY sense of the term?"

"Look! He just looked at me! I know he did!" the brunette waved shyly at a man across the room- who in turn only adjusted his glasses and looked back to his book.

Maria sighed heavily, resting her head on her arms.

"If we look more closely, we see this set is very different from the rest. Now, by splicing this gene…. Maria? Maria, please pay attention."

---------------------------

She'd gotten tired of fellow scientists stopping her in the corridors to admire Dr. Gerald's latest creation. And Shadow was eating it up, giggling and gurgling cutely as people tickled his tiny feet and made funny noises at him.

"That's enough limelight for one day, Shadow. You do love attention, don't you?"

"Maaaaa……"

"Yeah, maaa. I agree."

She set the carrier down on the soft grass of the atrium, sitting herself and gazing up at the leaves glistening with moisture.

"This is the only place I can remotely get some peace…. Or at least it was 'till I met you." She said, looking down at those big ruby eyes.

"Hn." He replied, clawing at the straps of his carrier.

"You want out?" she unbuckled him and let him sit up to look around.

"Ooooooohh……" he said approvingly, swinging a tiny food over the edge.

"Be careful…"

He tumbled out of the carrier, giggling. Maria laughed, a hand to her mouth.

"Don't break your neck, now…"

Shuffling on all fours, the baby ventured into the undergrowth. Maria stood and followed to make sure he didn't hurt himself.

He let out a squeal of delight as a bright red butterfly flew by his nose and landed on a large tropical blossom. He reached out as if he were going to pet it.

"No, Shadow, butterflies are delicate. No touch." She shook her head to accentuate "no" as he looked up at her in question.

"no?"

"No touch."

"No tush."

Maria giggled at his unbearable cuteness. "Right, no tush."

He watched as the butterfly flitted away, then gazed after it for a moment. He looked at Maria very seriously, attempting to speak.

"babafai."

"Butterfly." She said back. "Buh-ter-flyyy."

"Badafai. Badafwai!"

"It's amazing how smart they made you…" she said to herself in wonder at how quickly he was learning. Suddenly a loud beep was heard overhead as the PA turned on.

"Maria, you're needed in Dr. Gerald's central lab. His orders are for you to leave the ultimate life form in a cage. Bring your composition book."

The PA clicked as the announcer hung up. She only hoped the whole sector hadn't heard the message. How embarrassing.

"on my way, grandpa. On my way." She growled as she picked up the child and carrier, hurrying into her quarters.

She set him in his crib, drawing the top bars over it so he couldn't escape.

"Be good while Maria's gone. I'll be back in a flash, I promise."

"Mama?"

"Yeah, mama will be right back."

"Mamaaaa….." he whined tearfully.

"Oh, shush, please…." She grabbed her book and left before it was too much to bear.

The baby slumped in his crib, pouting. It wasn't long before he became bored and began to entertain himself with his feet. Once this lost interest, he ventured to see what he could reach through the bars.

The crib was set next to her bookcase, and she kept all her favorite novels near the bottom. This included some volumes of scientific research, quite a few encyclopedias, and a huge red leather book with gold vines curving around the binding.

These were just outside his reach. He strained, little hand opening and closing as he was centimeters from the binding of a book.

He managed to snag a hardback and drew it through the bars to examine it. He discovered the thing opened and was filled with all sorts of interesting marks. He closed it again to look at its cover, imprinted with gold ink. He traced his tiny fingers around the beveled letters and along some of the intricate vines with deep interest. If he could read, he would have found the title to be "The Lord of the Rings." After gazing at the shiny gold letters for a moment longer, he opened the book again to investigate the marks more closely.

-o-

"Maria! What took you so long?"

"Sorry, doctor….I…."

"No excuses, just come here. I need your input on this."

She nodded and stepped forward, peering over his shoulder at the predicament.

In a small bowl-like cradle there lay the red hedgehog Dr. Gerald had been sustaining for the last two weeks, sniffling pitifully with streams of new and dried tears on her plump little face.

"She's grown immune to half my sedatives. Anything stronger might cause brain damage or death, so you can see my plight."

"Of course, doctor…. But…. Why don't you just keep her awake?"

"Because I am NOT a nanny! I don't have time to sit around and watch over a furling until it's grown! I need a solution and I need it NOW!"

"Surely…… you're not thinking of putting her in MY care…" she stammered.

"Of course not! This one shall remain free from as much influence as possible. I don't want her developing personality of any sort."

"W….why is that?"

"I'll explain later! Now… what am I to do…?"

the girl perked up, remembering she'd kept a spare bottle of formula in her lab coat just in case. She produced it, still warm from body heat.

While Gerald was searching through the bottle of various sedatives, she picked up the sobbing child and offered her the formula. She suckled at it gladly, instantly blissful.

"How did you…. But….GIVE ME THAT!" he snatched baby and bottle from her angrily, feeding her himself.

"Go back to your quarters. I don't need you anymore."

She nodded, stifling the urge to snicker and left.

-o-

laughing to herself, Maria stepped through her door, tossing her composition book on her bed.

"Shadow, mama's back…"

And when she caught sight of the crib, she nearly had a heart attack.

Strewn across the baby blue blanket were several of her books, her FAVORITE books, and a little Shadow flipping happily through one of them.

"NOT MY BOOKS!" she rushed to pry the topmost bars from the crib, and frantically snatched up book after book, checking for damage. They were all perfectly intact.

Shadow grinned up at her proudly, pointing at a picture in her encyclopedic dictionary. The picture was of a common hedgehog.

"Shaadooo!" he shouted.

Maria stared in disbelief.

"How did you… but…. You can't read…. And that looks nothing like…..GOOD JOB, SHADOW!" she whisked him from the crib and spun him around with glee.


	4. Understood

((Sorry for my period of silence. (ffnet's fault. Hope you got your emails.) I've been writing other things that you may or may not have seen yet. Praise be to GameGirl2:ahem: anyway, as I was pleased with the sudden and positive response to this fic, I decided to continue it shortly (this is shortly). So, all of you eager to read more of this should just put me on your author alerts and be done with it. I can't update my fics daily like I used to. You'll just have to grin and bear it. Besides, I myself use author alerts extensively. (just do it!))))

Sonic: her new fic she was talking about is actually quite revolting.

Knuckles: I would agree but I'd get hit with something unpleasant.

A: ahem. Anyway, I'm afraid there isn't enough room for too much further baby-ness. I'm going to have to fast-forward a bit to at least2 and a half years where he's just old enough to start basic education (as Gerald deemed).

About Fahrenheit Rouge… Please keep an open mindif you decide to read. Note that I'm only a writer, and the situation is completely fictional. No character actually completely emulates anyone in reality. (you'll see why I said that. I'm not especially thrilled at the thought of being arrested or sued.) Don't bother if you're republican.

: whatever the weasels said were lies! Lies I tell you! I DON'T own Sonic! So please stop calling me:

_Chapter 4- Understood_

"Heeere comes the space shuttle! Gliding in to dock with the station…." Maria said in her usual baby falsetto, holding a spoonful of unrecognizable mush. Baby food. No wonder he wouldn't eat it.

He of course turned away, glaring angrily at the wall. He seemed a little embarrassed to have to be fed, but then again, he hadn't really gotten the hang of feeding himself without covering half his body trying to get the food in his mouth.

Maria sighed, setting the small spoon back in the cup and resting her elbows on the metal table.

"Shadow, look at me."

He did so, folding his chubby little arms.

"You have to eat."

"I know." he'd been pretty good at forming short sentences, and comprehended more than he could vocalize at the moment. She was impressed with his progress.

"What happens when you don't eat, Shadow?"

"mmm……" he thought for a moment, trying to form the word in his head. "Mmmmmaaal…..malnutrissshhhun."

"Malnutrition. Right. And what happens when you become too malnourished?"

"I die?"

"They won't let that happen." She said, picking up the food cup. "They'll stick a needle in your arm and you eat that way."

He looked at her with wide, frightened eyes. "How do you eat through a needle? That just-"

"Do you want that, Shadow?"

He shook his head enthusiastically.

"Then open up."

He did so, reluctantly, making a face as he swallowed the bland mush.

"Good boy."

As he finished off his breakfast, a loud tolling beep was heard throughout the sector.

"Time for class, sweetie!" Maria squeaked, trying to get the child excited.

He yawned, blinking indifferently.

Since Shadow, advanced for his incredibly young age, had caused a bit of a disturbance in the human kindergarten class by calling a few of the children "troglodytes," he had been moved into a separate class of about second and third grade "splicers."

What are splicers, you ask? These were the products of tests performed by lab groups in the station. They were the anthro-fauna that the scientists specialized in creating. Shadow himself was technically considered a splicer, but since he was so far above the rest in genetic structure, he was basically in a class all his own. He never failed to remind them, either.

The educator disregarded the tiny black hand that had shot up immediately after he had written a problem on the whiteboard.

"Anyone? Anyone at all?"

"Ummhhh! Helloooo? Edumacater person…."

"Besides Shadow."

He slumped. A shrew timidly raised her hand, fidgeting.

"Daria, go ahead."

"Three?"

"NOO! You IDIOT!" Shadow berated, sliding out of his chair with difficulty.

"Shadow, please take your seat…"

"Nuh-uh. I'm outa here. You guys're all nincompoops."

"Shadow! Now!"

He stuck his tongue out at the enraged scientist, continuing his teetering trek to the door.

Maria pulled at her hair, stifling the urge to scream. "Shadow, why?"

He folded his arms as he was sitting on the edge of her bed. "They don't know anything."

"Of course they do. Why do you think I put you in there? They know things that you don't. Like writing…"

"If I can read, why do I need to write?"

"Shadow, you can't even read all that well yet. And that's a pretty silly question andI think you know it."

"Humf." He looked away, a little embarrassed.

"For a two-year-old, you sure can be over-confident." She chuckled, ruffling his quills. She noticed that there seemed to be lighter quills growing in, like grey highlights on top. She'd noted this in her compu-journal before. An interesting development….

"Here, I'll tell you what. I'll talk Grandpa into letting me educate you personally. Would you like that?"

"Yeah… a'course I would… but… but he might say that whole… attachment thing… what does attachment mean?"

She sighed, raking a hand through her loose hair. "When did he say this?"

"Eh, I dunno. I heard him yelling about it to his recorder thingy. Said it was bad for me to be around you so much. 'Softening' me, he said."

She shook her head. "Don't listen to all that. Nothing I can do will 'soften' you. Trust me. You're a hard-willed little…. guy on your own."

"Okees." He leaned against her arm, nuzzling slightly.

"Maria…."

"Yes?"

"Would it be soft of me to say something?"

"What's that?"

"I……I love you, Maria."

An irresistible smile spread across her face, and she felt a tear tugging at the back of her eye. She wrapped an arm around him, drawing his tiny form into a tight hug.

"Not at all, Shadow. Not at all."

He smiled, snuggling deeper into her arms and sighing happily.

"And I love you too. I want you to know that." she said into his quills. She felt him nod.

_'This… this must be what every mother lives for…'_ she thought.

----------

"Say it aloud for me." Maria prompted.

"hnnn….."

"Go on. It's not hard."

"Yeah right…."

"Shadow…."

"Okaay! Fine…. Ahem…..From the……… loving………. example of one family……… a whole state becomes loving……. and from its c…..cooo…..cor…."

"Courtesies…." She helped, hugging him as he sat in her lap, book held up by small hands.

"…Courtesies…… the whole state becomes while, from the ambition….. gee, no wonder they called him Confucius! This whole thing 'is' confusious!"

Maria giggled. "Confusing?"

"Yeah, I said that. Confusious." He yawned, rubbing at an eye, the book falling to her lap.

"I think it's naptime for you, mister."

He nodded in agreement. He hadn't taken a nap last cycle.  
(AN- in space stations and with astronauts -so I've heard- they measure every 24 hours as a cycle- aka a day.)

She picked him up, carrying him to his crib. She didn't think he needed one anymore…. He was so smart for a two-year-old…… he didn't need "fencing in" as it were.

As he rolled over and closed his eyes, Maria sat on her bed, thinking about the other special project…. Eidola was it? Strange name for such a beautiful child…. She hadn't seen her in some time now. A year, maybe. What were his plans with her? What could she possibly be meant for? She pondered after it for a moment. No personality…. She had her own theories about that. She believed that every infant- to some extent- is born with their own personality. Even the artificially-made splicers had their own mannerisms and temperaments they went into. She'd been around enough of them to know. However, her grandfather -the Darwinist- believed that they were only animals with the gift of comprehension and speech…. and whatever other abilities were assigned to them during the "test tube stage."

But she did know why Shadow had come into being. That was all too clear. Gerald was trying to outdo the mechanical creations of others in her family. The "inefficient," "mindless" AI created extensively for various purposes were quickly eliminating the need for human workers. It wasn't right. Besides, if we created them, we should reign superior. Even Maria agreed with that. So… Shadow was the first step in eliminating the robotic takeover. Robots lacked what living creatures are born with: free will. Intuition. Instinct.

Then, it struck her. Shadow was the first of a kind…. and yet, irrepeatable. If Gerald was planning on having many like him….

She stood, glancing to the crib. She watched as his tiny sides rose and fell with the heavy breaths of sleep. She picked up her composition book; brow furrowed, and strode to the door. She had some words for Dr. Gerald. Some strong ones.

-o-

"Grandfather!" she fairly shouted, storming through the metal door. This sudden outburst caused the good doctor to drop the flask in his hand, sending it clattering and spilling its contents on the floor.

"What in God's holy name could be so important?" he demanded, grabbing a rag to clean the mess with.

"I know what Eidola was created for."

"Good job, Maria. Now, kindly leave."

"When were you going to tell me? When it was too late?"

"Too late? What do you mean? It's perfectly logical, Maria. I don't know what's got you all fired up… go back to your own work, please."

She felt her throat tighten. "They have feelings too, Grandfather! Don't you see? They have genuine intellect, they have personality! They are literally people! You can't do this to people!"

The old man sighed, setting down flask and rag on a nearby counter, leaning against it and regarding her with a disappointed frown. "Maria, as much as I encourage you to make your own hypotheses, to come up with your own notions, I have to insist you discontinue this idea immediately. You know they're not human. It's better to just think of them as lab rats. Don't get attached."

_'So… that's what he meant…..'_ she thought to herself, anger boiling.

"You're right, Grandfather. They aren't technically 'human.' Before, it was the gift of speech that separated us from the animals. But…. But they can speak…. And they feel emotion… face it! We aren't the only dominant species! Not for hundreds of years now!"

(AN- my theory is that the characters live in a futuristic earth parallel to our own at the same time (So I can continue to use my Bush jokes). In this parallel earth, hundreds of years ago, man created the anthro-fauna; the splicers. That's what Sonic and all the other anthromorphic animals are. Ok, I'm done.)

"I can't tell you anything you don't already know on this subject, Maria." He began sternly. "You have your opinions. I'm just going along with mine. And, let me add, we've done this before. It's protocol. You won't even have to worry about it until the time comes."

Maria huffed for a few moments, clenching the book in her hand.

Both jumped slightly at the sound of a small footfall as a scarlet head peeked into the room.

"W… what time is that, doctor?" a small, thin voice inquired innocently. Eidola had escaped from her "crib" to see what the yelling was about. Both scientists stared at her with wide eyes, unsure how to answer such an unassuming question.

"I'll tell you later, Eidola. Go on back to your book." Gerald ordered.

She dragged a sneakered toe, shyly reluctant, biting her tiny lip and looking at the floor.

"It's boring…. And who's she?" she asked, looking up and pointing at the blonde.

"None of your concern. Go back to your cage and read your book."

She pouted, shuffling back into the room and out of sight.

Gerald stepped forward, clasping strong hands on the girl's shoulders.

"Listen carefully. I'm going to need you to educate her in the near future. She is to learn only what I designate and you are not to express much emotion if any at all in her presence. Am I perfectly clear?"

"…yes, doctor."

"And it is VITAL that she not come in any contact with the ultimate life form. Do you understand?"

"Yes, doctor." She stared at his chest, brow creased and eyes narrowed.

"Look at me, Maria."

She obeyed, regarding him with her sneer.

"I'm doing this for her own good- for both of them. I know it's hard for you to understand, but you'll see. We made them, Maria. We made them to serve us. Don't get attached."

She nodded, even though by that simple movement, she was boldface lying. It was too late.

"I'll get back to you in a week or so. I'll give you her curriculum. I expect you to follow it."

"Yes, doctor."

He stepped away from her, patting her damp cheek in an attempt at affection.

"Get back to work."

She nodded slowly, and left. She hadn't realized until that moment….. she hated him.

(AN- you're probably all confused as to why Maria is miffed. I did that on purpose. I'll reveal it later.)

-o-

"Maria…." He said after a long moment of silence after she had returned. The first thing she did was to throw herself on her bed and bury her face in her pillow. This disturbed the small hedgehog, and he unlatched the bars of his crib with ease, crawling down and hobbling over to see what the matter was.

"Maria… was it grandpa?"

"Yes, Shadow." She answered softly.

"Wh… what's up with him now?"

She was quiet, shoulders quaking.

"…it wasn't something I did…. was it?" he asked, a little nervously.

"No, Shadow. No. It was him." She raised herself, sniffling and wiping at her reddened face. The child frowned sorrowfully, crawling onto the bed, scooting next to her. He placed a little hand to her cheek, trying to comfort her. She placed her own pale hand over his, looking deep into those distressed roseate eyes. She couldn't help but smile.

"I love you Shadow. I always will. Don't you forget."

He smiled shyly, head tilted down, still affixing her with his worried gaze.

"I know."

She drew him into a hug, sitting up.

"Never forget, Shadow."

"I won't…. I promise….." he smiled peacefully as he snuggled against her lab coat, feeling safe in her familiar scent…. Sweet lilac mixed with the sterile aroma of assorted lab chemicals.

"Maria… sing for me again?"

"You don't need that now. Bedtime's not for a few hours yet."

"Just once…. Please…."

She chuckled, giving in. she looked down at him lovingly, recalling his favorite lullaby.

"Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup

They slither wildly as they slip away across the universe

Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my open mind

Possessing and caressing me

Jai Guru Deva om"

He knew the song well, and he especially liked the chorus, so he joined in as she continued…

"Nothing's gonna change my world

Nothing's gonna change my world

Nothing's gonna change my world

Nothing's gonna change my world…."

"Nothing's gonna change your world, Shadow." She whispered, kissing his forehead. "Nothing. Ever."

((it was really hard to close this chapter, I'll tell you. I just couldn't get enough of the cute Shadyness! Awh! Anyway, I may have gone into too much detail on the whole "humans vs. splicers" debate. I like that term for them, don't you? Splicers… has a nice ring to it…..)))

Sn: I'm a lab rat, am I? I see how it is….

Shadow: woo. I was a child genius. What's with Aeyvi and all these child geniuses, neh?

A: ahem, Cream and Charmy are far from geniuses. Helloooo.

K: yes, but you rarely use them. And grapes, actually.

A: Eidola won't be a genius. That diffuses the trend. Happy?

Sn and Sh: alright, fine.

A: one more note before I forget. I have a gift for you all who like big words but don't know a lot of what I'm saying. Go to www dot merriam-webster dot com/toolbar/ and download the toolbar. Trust me, it makes a difference. I use it every ten minutes at least. And it's a hellofa lot better than the ffnet dictionary. Trust me on this. Hey, when you're done installing, highlight "eidola" and look up its meaning. You'll think I'm clever, yes. alright, I'm done. Goodnight.)))) had to break up the link, btw. sorry.


	5. Little Dolly

((You have no idea just how long it's really been. Seriously, just about two years since I started this fic. Yes, I have been taking down notes for it, and I have too many ideas set out for this fic. WAY too many. In fact, there was a time when I actually considered co-writing this thing with a certain individual… I won't be mean, he had some great ideas… and he did inspire me quite a bit- but this is my baby and I have to finish it myself. Sigh. I was destined to be a loner.

Enough about me. The reason I'm updating this (as if I needed another reason) somebody nameless reviewed asking about- hang on, I can't believe this so I have to read it again- the lemon. "Get the lemon in already" they say! THE FUCKING LEMON! Ok, how old are our subjects? How much of the story do you want me to skip? This is a bildungsroman, people. A story about the moral and psychological growth of the main character. Not porn.

But, for you, my fans, I'll find somewhere to put some lemony freshness in sooner. Happy? Can't tell you when or where exactly and it probably won't involve hedgies, but somewhere. Probably not too tasteful. And I'd be ruining my timeline and my plot slightly. but what's the point in writing if I don't entertain you, the reader?

I'm done being peeved. I have writing to do, it seems.)))

Shadow: yes, you do. I'm done wearing diapers.

Eidola: -crying annoyingly- I wanna bigger part in tha storyyyyyyyy.

Sonic: wow. For ultimate life forms, they sure are whiny. –gets suckerpunched-

Sh: _I_ am the ultimate life form. _ME_. NOT her. She's….. well, we don't know her well yet.

Ei: yeaah, I don't know me well either. AUTHOR!

A: sigh she sighed with a sigh. Rub it in. I'M GETTING TO IT!

_Chapter 5- Little Dolly_

"All strapped in?"

Little Shadow tugged at the straps on his in-lines, small pink tongue protruding. He affirmed with a happy nod.

Maria tightened the strings on her own skates, readjusting her kneepads and straightening her light blue shorts as she stood. "Helmets on."

He struggled with the oversized headgear, snapping it in place and giving her a thumbs-up.

"Kay, elbow pads, kneepads, wrist guards, helmets…. Missing anything?"

"Yeah." He replied. "How do I get up?"

Over the past two years, he had mastered walking, and had begun jogging with Maria around the circular paved path that skirted the flora of the atrium. Soon enough, he was sprinting on the treadmill in Gerald's specially-designed gym. He had a smaller one made just for him alongside the larger version Maria used almost daily. "Healthy body, healthy mind" was one of her favorite sayings. Since Shadow was literally built for speed, Maria soon found herself lagging behind the child as he dashed ahead along the path, and Gerald had to upgrade the treadmill to allow higher speeds.

This was Shadow's very first time on wheels, and although he'd seen Maria glide effortlessly in skates numerous times (as it was one of her favorite pastimes) he was nervous about doing it himself.

Maria bit her lip, grinning, and pulled him to his feet. "Ok, skating is different from walking or running. When you want to move forward, you push off- like this." She demonstrated, gliding a short distance and stopping with her heel.

The small hedgehog took a breath, clenched his fists, little tongue sticking out in concentration. He then attempted to imitate her actions, but ended up shuffling clumsily to her side.

Maria coughed, trying not to giggle. "Alright, that was good, but we're gonna work on that stride…"

-

Gerald watched the slow progress through a window with interest. He had not yet specified any exact exercises for the child during his hour of physical training, just that he develop the right muscles and improve on his ground speed. He knew his granddaughter had a fondness for these in-line skates… he just didn't think about their potential.

His mind reeled as he watched his learning progress… the grace with which Maria seemed to float on those primitive wheels…. The added speed….

He smiled to himself, pulling out his digital notepad and jotting shorthand furiously as he turned and strode back toward his lab.

--

Maria flopped exhausted on a bench, wiping beads of perspiration from her brow as little Shadow shot past in his umpteenth lap around the atrium.

"Doing great gasp you just wheeze keep it up gasp …"

Again, our Ultimate Life Form had shown how quickly he learned, much to Maria's fatigue. She checked her watch, then laid her head back against the bench. 1500. Time to pick up Eidola.

She heard the whirr of little wheels approaching. Quickly, she darted a hand out and grabbed his arm, swinging him to a stop to get his attention. He staggered for a moment, then waited for Maria to catch her breath.

"It's fifteen-hundred. Go get your biology books and join Dr. Stafford in the herpetology lab."

"Herpa-what? That means lizards, doesn't it?"

"Right. Reptiles. You'll be learning about them today. Now, scoot-scoot." she gave his rump a pat in the direction of her apartment and he scooted off, making zooming noises and holding his arms out like a jet plane.

"Don't forget to take off those skates!"

"I knooowww."

Maria waited there until she saw his dark form scuttle off to sector seven, then headed back herself for a change and a much-needed shower before Eidola's lesson.

-

"…this means that in a complex, non-linear system, a small change in the input could produce a huge change in the output. In Lorenz's computer world, it was equivalent to a butterfly's wing-beat causing a hurricane in another part of the world."

The girl sat spellbound, chin in hands as she listened to Maria read.

"What do we call this effect?"

"The butterfly effect?"

"Yes, that's right. Now, I remember you asked me last week why the weather simulator in the atrium had a randomizer, so that some days it rained and others it didn't."

"Yeah, and how come sometimes it rains a lot and sometimes it's windy." Eidola sat up in her chair, crossing her legs at the ankles.

"Well, first of all- and I know this isn't in your lesson- no machine can produce truly random results. It's actually impossible to apply the chaos theory to a computer completely. Every machine uses an algorithm."

Eidola nodded and wrote a note on that.

"… 'Given the complexity of the forces and processes that go to determine the weather, it can never be predicted beyond a short period of time ahead. Chaos theory, then, sets definite limits to the predictability of complex non-linear systems.' So you see, even though the weather simulator is set randomly, it can never compare to the weather on earth. There are so many different forces that cause and change normal weather."

"ok…." The child said, chewing on her pen in thought. "then why do we even have the randomizer at all? Why don't they just make it rain every other day? I mean, what difference does it make to the atrium if the weather isn't controlled?"

"Ah, there you have it! This is what we scientists are studying. By applying something like chaos theory to the atrium- a contained environment- we can study the results of random weather as opposed to controlled weather in our plants and animals. And do you know what we've found so far?  
"Life thrives on Chaos." She stated after a pause.

She smiled and closed the book.

"That's it for today. Tomorrow we're going to learn more about the Chaos Theory and independent variables. Now, would you like to do physical training now, or would you like to play in the jungle for half an hour?"

The girl popped up happily and skipped to Maria's stereo. "I wanna listen to music again."

Maria sighed. "You know Grandpa won't approve… I shouldn't be allowing it."

She gave in to those big, watery, pleading gold eyes- as usual- and put on some music. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's "Carry On."

Eidola squealed with joy and grabbed Maria's hands, pulling her out of her chair and into an open space in the floor. "Teach me how to dance like you did that one time!"

"Eidola…"

"Pleeeeeeeeeease?"

She chuckled. "Fine. Do what I do, try to keep up."

_Where are you going now my love?  
Where will you be tomorrow?_

_Will you bring me happiness?_

_Will you bring me sorrow?_

In the midst of their laughter and twirling, neither heard the rapid footfalls coming up the path…

Maria froze as the door flew open, wide-eyed, caught in the act. Eidola, oblivious, continued her little dance with her eyes closed.

Shadow, hand still on the doorknob, froze as well, ears laying back as he saw the shocked look on Maria's face.

"….h…hey. What's wrong?"

She relaxed slightly as she was expecting to see Gerald's angry face in the doorway. "Uh…. Shadow… you're not supposed to be back yet…"

"Yeah, Dr. Whatsisname had to run off and help Dr. Whoosamacallit and…. Who're you?" he regarded the stranger who was still twirling about with her eyes closed.

She suddenly bumped into the bookcase, tripping and falling on her backside. She looked up at the other hedgehog, then tilted her head quizzically.

"Ah! She's, …. She's nobody. She just dropped by to… to…" Maria pulled the girl to her feet, standing between the two in an attempt to keep at least ONE of Dr. Gerald's strict rules.

But, to her dismay, the little girl only stepped around her and up to the Ultimate Life Form, extending a friendly hand in greeting.

"I'm Eidola. I like your quills."

Shadow dragged an ungloved hand over his quills- which had taken on dark red highlights during the past two years- and then smiled and shook her hand.

"I'm Shadow. And,… um… thanks."

Maria put a hand to her forehead and sighed heavily. So much for THAT rule…

"Look, guys, you weren't supposed to meet….. yet. Grandpa… he…."

The children looked up at her with confused expressions, Shadow scrunching his nose slightly.

"Let's just not tell Grandpa, ok?"

-o-

Over the next few months, the children became fast friends, as most children easily do.

They met whenever their schedules overlapped- which was usually during physical training.

Maria ended up teaching Eidola how to skate as well, and the two raced around the path whenever possible. Of course, poor little Eidola was outmatched, but that didn't stop her from accepting every challenge.

They often listened to Maria's music, and it was one day while listening to "Here Comes The Sun" that Eidola was given the nickname "Little Dolly." It fit her, Maria thought, better than the one Gerald gave her.

-o-

Maria sat on a blanket spread out on the warm grass, watching the two play hide-and-seek through the trees. She had a book open in front of her, checking Shadow's work from earlier that day, and she tried to keep her attention divided equally between this and the children, but she had to concentrate on the long math problems to make sure he was showing his work. She picked up the page to cross-reference it, and didn't notice Shadow sneaking up on a crouched Eidola.

She thought herself so cleverly hidden behind that rock. She was sure he'd have a hard time finding her this time. She grinned to herself, peering around the rock for any sign of him.

But, of course, the boy was right behind her, slinking stealthily through the tall grass. He snickered to himself evilly, crouching as well and preparing to pounce.

A breeze picked up in the atrium, catching Maria off-guard and blowing the paper from her hand. She swore mildly, getting up to chase after it.

Just as she grabbed it, Shadow leapt upon the unsuspecting Dolly, this in turn causing her to screech in surprise and both tumbled in a small wrestling match as they rolled down the hill…

Maria leaned over to pick up the paper, unaware of the ball of brawling hedgehogs that sped down the slope behind her.

Before she could stand, she was knocked from her feet and sent sprawling.

The children continued their little spat at the foot of the hill, Dolly swatting aimlessly at his face. He tackled her, pinning her to the ground and shoving her face in the dirt. Her squeals of distaste were muffled as Shadow simply sat on her back and laughed.

His laughter was cut short, you see, when he saw the looming form of Maria…. Arms folded and bearing a scowl that she probably borrowed from Gerald.

"oops."

"BOTH OF YOU!" she shouted. Immediately, they stood, hands folded behind their backs.

"Did you even see me when you ran me over? Or were you too busy trying to kill each other to notice?"

They looked to the ground in silent shame.

"He started it." Dolly piped up.

"TATTLETALE!" Shadow smacked her roughly upside the head.

"Shadow!" Maria scolded, stepping over and giving him a smack of her own.

"We don't hit!"

He just looked at her with an eyebrow cocked, rubbing the back of his head in confusion.

((And that's where I decided to end it. I know, most of it was long-winded and (of course) there were no lemons. But 1, I am not a pedophile and 2, Maria's too busy to have relations with a coworker. And let me tell you, office romances never work out. Geez, every guy on the station is basically a co-worker. How sad. Ok, I'll see what I can do.))


	6. Variables

((Since I started brainstorming for this fic again, all sorts of NEW and interesting ideas flooded me. Plus I was stoned. But the point is- I have my muse back! Thank you for all your kind reviews and forgive me for erasing the abomination- aka the random pointless lemon- and most of all, thank you for sticking with me this long. You knew the updates were coming, right?

Shadow: no, I actually gave up on you. Bitch.

Sonic: sigh. We have nothing to say, it seems.

Tails: wow. That's sad.

Ok, so onto the fic, I guess.

_Chapter 6- Variables._

Shadow hopped onto the exam table, swinging his feet and watching the doctor prepare for his weekly evaluation.

"Alright, lay down and we'll get started."

He obeyed, folding his hands over his chest and staring up into the lights. He was used to the check-ups and the tests. Obviously he was something of great interest to the scientists. They kept doing these tests and making him perform mundane or silly tasks and writing notes furiously, conversing excitedly amongst themselves as if he held the secret of life itself. He just went along with the evals, chuckling silently at their supposed "genius." Of course, Shadow knew very little about his prime directive or the extent of his contribution to genetic research.

As Gerald drew a small amount of blood from Shadow's arm, he struck up the same trivial conversation.

"So, how is your education progressing?"

"It's fine, I guess. I started learning about computer mainframes yesterday-"

"That's nice. And your physical training?" he asked, cutting him off as usual.

Shadow sighed, rubbing his arm as the doctor transferred the blood sample to a test tube.

"My speed's improving. I'm still practicing on skates for about an hour a day like you wanted. Oh, and sprinting on the treadmill."

"Excellent. We're going to change your schedule soon. You need more physical training. We'll just pack more of your curriculum into a three-hour slot. You were designed to learn quickly anyway."

Shadow's brow furrowed at this, but he only shrugged to himself and remained silent for the remainder of the eval.

"So, you turned six last week."

Shadow nodded, squinting as a blue sheet of light passed over his body, scanning.

"We can begin the basics of your combat training next month. I wanted to get you started sooner, but it's important that you build up your strength."

He looked over the information gathered thus far, content with the results.

"Alright. Put on the sensors and we'll get you on the treadmill."

This was one of the meaningless tasks Shadow felt was unnecessary. He already spent enough time on treadmills during PT, and the little round stickers he placed to his temples, chest, arms and thighs made no sense at all to him. But he knew better than to ask too many questions of the doctor. Questions tried his patience.

Gerald monitored the child's pulse, blood pressure, perspiration, and muscle movement, jotting notes.

The treadmill only got up to about 120 MPH, Shadow didn't even break a sweat. He hopped off the device after it died down, plucking the wireless sensors from his fur with annoyance.

"Can I go now?"

Gerald only looked at him with bushy eyebrows raised in question over his clipboard.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. We're starting you on electrolysis today."

"Wha?"

--

First, let me inform you that little Shadow couldn't stand needles. He put up with the drawing of blood merely because the red liquid interested him. He allowed IVs during some monitored workouts because the fluid dripping into his veins gave him energy; or in some cases, made him lightheaded and see pretty spots of light. But, again, that was just his arm. And he was used to being poked in the arm by now.

One look at the room filled with shallow dishes containing long, wired needles was all it took.

Gerald noted the look of terror and the flattened ears with alarm.

"Shadow…. Take some deep breaths. Whatever's making you feel the need to run, I need you to ignore it."

"No. No way. Uh uh. You can't make me. I ain't gonna sit still while you- HEY!"

He had just received a jolt at the back of his neck- a little device Gerald kept around should he need to subdue the Ultimate Life Form. It only paralyzed his limbs, but kept him fully conscious.

He caught the boy as he fell limp, eyes bearing shocked surprise.

All he could do was lie on the cold metal, tears streaming silently as each needle found its way into flesh. Along his arms, across his chest, practically every inch of his legs. Even his fingers and toes were subject to the variety of needles. As a few short needles were applied to his neck, he fixed the doctor with a razor-sharp glare. Those crimson eyes bore into him, through the thick glasses… scalding his soul.

Gerald shook it off, as he did with almost everything emotional, and scooted on the small wheels of his chair to the nearby computer, typing in approximate voltage and desired toning.

His small body twitched and convulsed unwillingly under the charge, and he drew quick, shallow breaths of pain as he lay there… powerless.

"You'll thank me for this later, Shadow. Trust me."

-o-

Maria hummed to herself happily, hopping from stone to stone that lead to her front door. She looked up, jolting in surprise as she saw the crumpled black form on her doorstep.

"Shadow… are you… gasp! "

He looked up at her with bloodshot eyes, lip quivering as he held his legs close to his body, rubbing his sore arms….. arms that now bore bright red streaks…

"Oh my God… Shadow…" she knelt and pulled him into a worried hug, tears beading in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry we do this…"

-o-

However cruel the electrolysis was, it did the trick. His primary muscle function had increased ten fold over the next month- far more rapidly than if he had merely increased his training…. which was increased despite.

He was given his own quarters, a room part of the circular metal boundary that skirted the atrium. He didn't mind so much… he was entering the stage in which "mother no longer knows best." And as he tested his physical limits daily, "girls" in particular, began to seem more weak and useless.

"Girls" meaning primarily Eidola.

--

Shadow dropped to the grass heavily, panting and rubbing a knuckle along the red streak on his leg. If only he'd remembered to stretch out before skating… if only he'd had the patience.

"You giving up, Shade?"

He just winced at her angrily, an expression of sarcastic disgust. "The only reason you're even keeping up with me is because I have combat training in the morning. I'm already at a third of my capacity by the time YOU show up…"

"Uh huh. Whatever makes you sleep better at night." She grinned, executing a quick twirl on her skates before taking off again.

"Bitch…."

He jerked as someone cleared her throat loudly behind him.

"Sorry… it slipped."

"Who taught you to swear, Shadow?" it was Maria, of course.

'_Great. Now Eidola has the lead and there's nothing I can do about it. Figures.'_

"I dunno. I hear it a lot. That's all." He rubbed at his other sore leg, pretending it was more interesting.

"Just because you hear it doesn't mean you repeat it."

He sighed exaggeratedly and rolled his eyes.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Now, I think you need a rest before you rush off and try to kill yourself again."

Maria shifted the books she held, finding one on history.

"Besides, your study time has been cut down to two hours. Might as well start in a little earlier."

"BUT! But, my freestyle PT…please, no, Maria! PLEEASE?"

"Your entire day is devoted to physical training. One hour less than usual isn't going to kill you."

"YES IT IS!"

She just gave him a flat stare.

"Come on. We're wasting time."

-

Shadow trudged through the door, skates still donned.

Maria set about organizing the day's curriculum, looking up when he plopped forcefully in a chair.

"Skates _off_."

He groaned, whining. "But, can't I just leave 'em on?"

Maria raised an eyebrow, a pained look of "are you serious?"

He sighed in aggravation, tugging at the straps reluctantly.

"I don't wanna wear shoes."

"That's only because you won't tie the laces."

"Yeah, but I wanna wear skates ALL the time." He grinned at his little fantasy, setting the skates aside.

She smiled, shaking her head. He was too cute.

"I'm sure you would. Now, book open. Page 125. The Roman republic…."

-o-

Eidola skated into the lab, skidding gracefully to a stop, quite pleased with herself. She wasn't designed for speed, like Shadow, but she still had it. That and practiced grace.

"Eidola! You're late."

"Sorry, doctor, I got, erm, lost."

He only narrowed his eyes behind those thick spectacles. He disregarded the white lie.

"I've been doing some extensive research, as of late… remember when I told you about the emeralds?"

She nodded, absently twirling on her skates.

"_Please_ take those off and listen."

She obliged without a word further, sitting on the cold metal as he continued.

"It appears not only machines can draw power from them. As some hieroglyphs show, ancients used them in rituals… though I know not for what."

(AN- ok, I've been meaning to explain this, since I know you were wondering about it. Echidnas –as we know them in the Sonic realm- are not splicers. They were here long before humans, actually. They were what drove scientists to create other anthro-fauna, although the exact data on that fact became subject to speculation, and eventually became "myth.")

He punched a few commands into a nearby console and a glass canister rose from a compartment. The chatoyant sparkle of the silver chaos emerald gleamed from within.

(AN- ok, another alteration, excuse me. The original colors are blue, red, green, pink, yellow, white and purple. In some versions, the purple is silver/black. In MY version, the pink is silver/black. I can't stand pink. Anyway, onward…)

Dolly stepped up to the mesmerizing shimmer, popping up on besocked tiptoe so as to get a better look.

"We have two currently in our possession. There are seven, as far as we know. Further mineral research urges otherwise. Certain regions of earth bear mineral substances very much alike to the makeup of these seven gems. There could very well be more still forming. Who knows?"

He tapped the child's wrist as she reached out to touch the glass.

"Anyway, returning to the matter at hand… you, along with a few other anthro-fauna on station, were designed with the ability to activate, conduct, and control natural energy. To what extent, we have yet to witness. After my more recent research… I decided to use you as a test subject before considering others."

She frowned up at him with confused concern.

"Don't worry. Think of it as an honor." He patted her softly on the back. She just looked at the floor uneasily.

-o-

It was after 1800. Dinner time.

It was only now and during the hour of freestyle PT that Shadow and Dolly could actually meet. His schedule was becoming increasingly rigorous with each passing month… and hers had only just begun.

Both sat with their trays of unappetizing health food in cafeteria G22- one reserved for anthro-fauna and test subjects. They occasionally commented on how empty it was becoming, but thought no further on it.

"I bet you they all get to go to earth." Dolly said hopefully.

Shadow grumbled, poking a plastic fork at what was presumably "meat."

"Nah, they all die horrible deaths and their mangled bodies get jettisoned into the vacuum of space." he smirked at this, watching her lip pucker as she whimpered in fright.

"Don't say that! That's not true…."

"How do you know it isn't?"

"Because! People don't just die." She folded her little arms, turning up her nose.

"Yeah they do."

"No they don't."

"Psh. Whatever you wanna believe." He picked up his tray, depositing it in a trash receptacle as he walked out. Dolly jumped up and followed, taking her tray with her.

"Where are you going? And why did you just throw away your food?"

"If you consider THAT shit food, you need to come with me." he took the tray from her, tossing that away as well. She pouted, balling her fists.

"I'm gunna tell."

"No you won't." he kept walking.

"Yes I am! And you're gunna be in trouble!" she jogged to keep up, then grabbed at his quills, yanking him to a halt.

His reaction was so violently swift; she didn't even know she was in pain for a few moments. She just suddenly realized she was unable to move without her arms and shoulders stinging.

Shadow blinked in surprise, realizing he had her in a neck/shoulder/arm lock. Combat training was sinking in a bit more than he thought. He released her, thumbing his nose and huffing as he stood and continued walking like he did it purposefully.

"Come on, runt."

She blinked in confusion on the floor, then quickly rose and sprinted after him.

-o-

Maria closed door after her, striding to the large refrigerator of the level G24 lab staff lounge. She rummaged absently, starving from another full day without the concession of a lunch break. She'd been on her feet all day. She just wanted to sit down to a decent meal….

"Hey, Maria."

She jumped, gasping. She shut the fridge quickly, regarding the two with wide eyes.

They lounged on the nearby couch, each with a hamburger in hand, chewing innocently.

Dolly, realizing they were in disgrace, pointed at Shadow.

"He made me do it."

"I'm sure." She just sighed, lowering her head and smiling tiredly. "What the heck? I'll join you."

She sat between them with a sandwich of her own, ruffling Shadow's quills.

"This is the last time, ok? This place is off-limits."

"Yes, ma'am." they staved devious smirks.

(dreary sigh. I have so many more ideas… but I can't seem to get to the point. Arrgh! All this little kid stuff keeps getting in the way! DAMN YOU, MUSES! –shakes fist at the heavens- anyway, I'll get more plot in there next chapter. I have literally like a meg's worth of notes on my palm pilot. Seriously. I just have to get it chronological. Just stay tuned, I'm working on this. alright, wubbles you and review.)


	7. Science and Progress

((I'm being very bad. I stopped halfway through my next chapter of LAL because it just came to me… Listening to Norah Jones' "Wish I Could" did that to me. And you know what else? ONE PERSON noticed I added a chapter to PDL. ONE. UNO. SINGULAR. NOBODY notices I'm updating LAL anymore. I don't blame them, but back in my prime before ditched ALL my work because I accidentally posted a mature story in the wrong rating- I got upwards of 200 reviews!! It's a goddamn good story!! Hell, it's a fucking series!!! This story actually (eventually) leads into IAC, so yeah. I wanna be recognized up there with Anne McCafferey and the Steve in that aspect. It ain't easy doing a series, let me tell you. It never really ends…. :;gets a dizzy headache, has to sit down:; geezus… I bleed myself for you people, take some notice…

Yeah, I know, it's been a couple years. Gimme twenty lashes with a cat-a-ninetails. Just… spread the word, y'know?

Onto the fic. I'm running on low blood sugar and I can't seem to get my pulse down.

Sonic: you shouldn't play with yourself, then.

A:;whallops the wiseass:; you're disgusting and a disgrace to hedgie kind.

Shadow: here, here.

Knux: where where?

:;I don't own Shadow or Maria, I own Eidola and anything random I happen to make up along the way (including gravi-skates and the VR treadmill, and anti-adema gloves. You'll see.) So, if the wild notion comes up that you'd like to borrow anything, ask.

Oh, and I share ownership of the atrium idea with IceIndigo. That is all.))

_Chapter 7- Science and Progress (AKA a long-ass chapter, so break out the munchies.)_

A desert wind picked up, sending dead, yellow-white sand to momentarily cloud the arid sterile air. The head smothered the baked earth in dire rays, surely seeking out and immediately snuffing any plant life that may have tried to struggle its way through a crack in the solid ground overnight.

Death reigned white in the sky over purgatory.

A black spot appeared out of the desolate pale haze.

There and gone. A grey blur. A dust storm followed in his wake, the air itself rippling to part around him.

He smiled lightly as he listened to the steady tempo, fueling his speed through the buds embedded in his ears. He matched each stride to every other beat, controlling his breathing in quick, measured puffs through his nose.

_**Whoosh- whoosh**_

_You used to say, "Live and let live"_

_You know you did, you know you did_

_**Whoosh, whoosh**_

_But in this ever-changing world _

_in which we live in_

_Makes you give in and cry…_

**_Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…_**

His eyes narrowed as his smile spread to a cocky smirk…

_Say live and let die_

Now his pace doubled with the new rush from the burst of bass, letting his arms hang back as his legs swooped with furious grace.

He passed the checkpoint so fast, the pole wobbled violently and snapped, causing sparks to wink at its base.

Endorphins sparkled in his limbs, tingling and surging. His heart sighed a beat, pausing in its fluttering to keep up with his oxygen needs. The pace was dizzying.

And it felt _soooo_ good…

_One more lap… let me have one more lap…. Just one more…. Just one…_

The scenery flickered before his eyes, causing him to falter a step. He had to lunge to keep from plunging onto his face, swerving wildly.

_No, not yet not yet not yet not-_

The desert pixilated, fading into a grid of blurry yellow and white squares before returning to the grey-black of a dead screen. The treadmill slowed beneath him, and he removed the visor and headgear he had been wearing through his simulation. The powerful heat lamp above faded, clicking as it cooled.

Shadow gasped, leaning heavily on his knees as he tried to find the air. He leaned on a handrail to lift each skate, tapping the toe sharply against the metal to retract the wheels- a three-year old upgrade to his previous tailored skates.

"Very good, Shadow. Very impressive. You can go and hydrate yourself now." Gerald dismissed him with a gentle swoop of his left hand as he typed with the other.

Shadow only nodded, swaying with fatigue as he stepped off the machine, pulling off sensors with weakened hands. The endorphin rush had dissipated.

"You might want to take a rest as well, before preparing for combat training."

Shadow only raised a hand and dropped it in reply, trudging out of the room.

-

Dolly looked up from her book in alarm as she heard-felt a body fall heavily onto the bed on which she sat.

"Hard day?"

"It's not over yet."

She shrugged. "Sucks to be you."

He turned his head where he lay, sprawled on his stomach. He poked her in the back roughly.

"What's all this?" he asked, indicating the tight-fitting black shirt and shorts she now wore. She glanced over her shoulder as she had her back to him, blinking blankly for a moment.

"It's been a few days, hasn't it? I guess you weren't there to see it."

"See what?" he struggled to prop his torso up on his elbows.

She turned back to her book with a sigh. "Gerald went off the handle about it at Maria. He said I ought to start wearing clothing and she asked why. I didn't hear the reason, but she came back with some snide remark about how he had labeled us labrats, 'Labrats don't wear clothes, Grandfather,' she said. I never saw his face go so red." She grinned. "He yelled so loud, they said they heard him in sector two."

Shadow chuckled tiredly. "So they're making us dress up now, huh?"

"It looks like it's just me."

"Huh."

He tugged playfully at her tail. "You look ridiculous."

"So's your face."

He slugged her softly in the arm. "Shaddap."

How they had managed to keep their friendship secret from Gerald all these years was a mild miracle. They'd traversed at least a good 75 percent of the interior of the station, they'd reckoned, finding mischief and racing in the halls.

-

On Earth, it was the sunny year of '76, and bellbottoms and disco ruled the roost. Here on the station, however, trends were slow to catch. Records and 8-tracks brought back from the surface were immediately made digital for the downloading, the occupants hungry for new music whenever they could get it. Too bad Earth sphere didn't yet have the novelties of advanced computers and intranet.

T-shirts with catchy slogans were worn in the more casual sectors, stating things like "Life's a Ditch- Can ya Dig It?" and "What if they had a war and no one came…?" Once, Shadow spotted a black shirt with red lettering that stated: "Fighting for Peace is like Fucking for Chastity". He had asked Maria about the meaning of it, but she only gasped in repulsion and angrily asked who it was that had worn such a thing. An inquiry to Gerald upon the words "fuck" and "chastity" had much the same result. He was commanded to strip those words from his vocabulary. Humans can be very odd…

Twelve long years, twelve short moments. Life seemed as good and as bad as it was going to get. Things grew more annoying by the day, other things more intriguing. Like skating, for instance. And violence. And music.

And rebellion.

-0-

Ten minutes after he should have been in Gerald's lab, continuing some tedious lesson on minerals and energy or someshit, Shadow was lazily browsing through one of the station's small "libraries." There were rooms in certain sectors where they kept books for digitalization and archiving. After a book went digital, they simply packed it away elsewhere in storage, but the process was still a slow one. One entered by hand, page by page. So the books piled up.

You weren't "supposed" to "borrow" anything from these racks, but it was done often, and reading was one of Shadow's favorite non-physical pastimes.

He squatted on the tile floor, examining a bottom row of medical journals. Hormones, the endocrine system, common illnesses, rare diseases… wow, riveting. His interest migrated to a book on heart surgery, hoping for some gory illustrations. As he cringed/grinned, flipping through the book, an employee of the archives stooped down next to him, grabbing a volume on the understanding of genetics. He seemed not to notice as another book slipped out with it, and let it rattle to the floor as he rushed off to start digitizing. It came to rest opened on its face. Shadow sighed, closing the book in his hand to rescue it. He glanced at the title (Grey's Anatomy) and flipped it over to check for torn pages.

His brow furrowed slightly as he surveyed the place it had opened to, head tilting in curiosity. He set the other book aside, pulling his feet in to sit Indian-style on the cold tile.

-'-

He jolted at the rap on his door, stuffing the red book under his pillow and slumping immediately in mock-sleep.

The electric door slid open, and Eidola folded her arms across her budding chest.

"It's just me, dipshit. Cut the act."

He opened an eye, grinning. "Can't be too sure."

She hopped onto his bed, letting her feet dangle. She sipped at the can she had in her hand, offered him some.

"I love this stuff." He guzzled eagerly from the red can, pausing to belch lightly.

"Don't know why they put all the bubbles in it though."

"Must be an Earth thing."

He nodded, handing it back. He sat up against the metal headboard, pulling the book from hiding.

"W'cha readin'?"

"Something about humans."

"That's specific." She tried to hook a finger on the binding, but he jerked it away.

"No. It's mine." He cradled the book protectively behind an arm.

"What's so special about it?"

"I dunno."

"Why won't you let me see?"

"I dunno."

She huffed, frowning. "Lemme see."

"No."

"You're a real flake."

"Thanks…" he replied, distracted.

She sat for a moment in burning curiosity.

"Just let me see it!" she growled, wrestling it from his grasp. She squeaked when he pinched her, shoving him back against the headboard and rushing to the other side of the room with the coveted prize.

Her nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Geez, no wonder they wear clothes. They look hideous without fur."

"Give it back," he whined/growled.

"I'm not done yet."

"Just… give it back!" he jumped up, storming over and swiping for it. She turned away quickly. He snarled, grabbed her shoulder at her neck and collarbone, causing her to cinch up and lose her grasp, squeaking in instant pain. He snatched the book and shoved her roughly into a desk. She rubbed at her clavicle, turning with a shocked, irresistible grin on her face.

"You little bastard! I'm gonna get you for that!" she giggled. He grinned despite his frown as she tried to wrestle for it again, the play for the object being for the moment more entertaining than the object itself.

Shadow giggled in pain when she bit his arm, shoving her back and tackling her with a savage tickling of her midsection. She squealed with laughter, trying to get away. She rolled onto her stomach so he couldn't get at it, and they ended up toppling off the bed and continuing the wrestling match on the floor.

He grabbed her wrists, pinning her by crossing her arms over her chest. She continued to laugh breathlessly, smiling up at him and squirming.

"I win." he announced.

"No you don't, I'm a girl."

"So?"

"So it's not fair."

"I thought you women wanted equal rights."

"Oh, get off."

He released his hold, sitting back on his heels between her scabbed knees.

"I still win."

"Rematch later, then."

"Whatever, I'll still win."

She slid her legs under her, sitting up.

"What's the deal with the book, anyway?" she wiped some tears of mirth from her cheeks.

He stood, sitting on the bed again, recovering the book. "Scientific research."

She sat next to him, resting a cheek on his shoulder. "On humans?"

"On us."

She frowned with mild puzzlement. "How so?"

"Well…" he turned a few pages. "Apparently, they designed us to share their basic attributes. Opposable thumbs, bipetalous structure, larynx, similar pituitary gland and quasi-simian hormones. Basically, we were crossed with these advanced… primates… apparently as an improvement. Whether they were trying to improve hedgehogs or improve humans, I still can't figure out. So far as I can tell, they're inferior when it comes to genetics. Big, bumbling mutants."

"Except Maria."

"Yeah, except Maria." He flipped a few pages in the reverse.

"This part has me stumped, though."

He tapped the title. "I thought 'reproduction' had to do with labs. Test tubes. What's all this about?"

Dolly shrugged, yawning. His shoulder was comfy.

He coughed a breath of protest, pointing to an illustration. "And aren't these for… I dunno… waste outlet? What's all this about… cells and eggs? Eggs come from chickens. Eggs make omelets. What the hell is a uterus? Isn't that where my intestines are supposed to be?? How can there be room for it??" he looked down and clutched at his stomach worriedly.

Eidola sat up to read. "It's a _female_ organ, you idiot. And it looks like the pelvis is shaped differently. Calm down." she pursed her lips as she read on. "Besides, it's probably exclusive to humans. It says here they bleed every month. That's a genetic flaw." She shook her head, closing the book. "We weren't made with flaws."

He yanked the book back. "This could be serious! What if they don't realize they're flaws?? We could have all kinds of organs in there, taking up space and making all sorts of weird things happen! Like… like spewing green slime from our eyeballs!"

She just gave him a pained look and shook her head. "You've been watching 'movies' again, haven't you?"

He looked away, lip puffing, muttering. "Documentaries. They're documentaries."

"On zombies and Martians, sure."

She took the book gently back, sighing and opening it again. Little else to do.

"Seriously, you can't expect us to be JUST like them, can you? I mean, look at that. You don't have one of those, do you?" she pointed at a rather realistic colored illustration.

His cheeks saturated with pink and he had a sudden, intense interest in the ceiling.

"Nuh-uh." She half-grinned, noticing his reaction.

"Seriously?"

He remained silent, checking his watch.

She frowned/smiled again at him skeptically. Then she ventured to have a look for herself.

"WHAT THE HELL- STOP IT!" he clamped his legs shut, eyes wide with horror.

"I was just looking-"

"YOU DON'T NEED TO LOOK."

"I just wanted to see what a real one looked li-"

"GO LOOK AT YOUR OWN. THIS ONE'S MINE."

"But I don't have a-"

"IDON'TCAREGETAWAYFROMME."

She regarded him as one mentally ill, set the book on his bed and left stiffly. The door slid smoothly shut behind her.

Shadow stared furiously at his knees, cheeks burning. He cracked his knuckles nervously, huffing short breaths. Questions flooded his thoughts, and he glanced at the evil book. Looked away. Glanced again.

_I looked for answers and only found more questions._

_That's science for you._


	8. Research in Development

(( I'll warn you right now… I may not be in the best state in which to write, but I had the strongest urge I've had toward this fic that I've had in months, so here goes nothing.

BTW, ambien seems to lighten the wires that connect the plot parts. So, I'll have to go back and correct some spelling… it's all coming out right now.

((PS, that was months ago. You can see the line between drugginess and lucidity. Anyway, I'm continuing this instead of scrapping it altogether. It just needed some tweaking. ONWARD!!

I cannot has ownership of Shady. Sega/Nintendo has. They don't sharez. Tha bastardz.

But I can has chicken burritoz so therefore I pwnz and winz.)))

Chapter 8- Research of Development

Her head felt heavy…. her ears filled with voices… and music…

She was aware happily, that she was away. Far away. She felt herself smile and heard her own laughter without feeling those musical cascading sounds of relief being emitted from her throat. She lay back against… a cloud… and everything was right. He wasn't here. Everything was fine for now. For now. _Let the music play, let the angels sing to me… drape me with their heavenly-soft wings and utter God's comforting words. Everything is white. Everything is white. Everyone is safe._

_Everyone… is…_

She jolted upright, causing the angels to gasp squeaks of surprise and fly away. Puffs of cloud-cotton drifted down around her face.

"Shadow…. Dolly…"

She rubbed frantically at her eyes, shaking her head violently to clear the vision.

"Jordy, antidote!"

The darkness started to seep back in.

"JORDY!!!"

"Alright, alright, calm down…"

She felt a welcoming needle in the cleft of her inner elbow. Things started to clear.

She knew she'd be in so much trouble if Gerald ever found out about her little experiments with the inner cortex and medulla oblongata…. And mind-altering chemicals that come with the whole game. But… if not for recreational research, we wouldn't have the light bulb, now, would we?

Maria slid off the table, taking deep breaths.

"What's the time?"

Jordy, a slim, redheaded lab tech checked his watch. "24:32."

"Damnit, I'm late to pick up Shadow…"

"Don't worry about it, I'll cover for you." He shot her a warm, mischievous smile. "You've covered for me, haven't you?"

She melted a bit under his green, Irish gaze, unthinkingly fidgeting with a piece of her skirt. She got up, slipping her lab coat on, sneaking another coy glance at him. "Thanks, Jord. I mean it."

"Same time next week? I can be _your_ patient next time…"

"Hey, now…. We'll have none of that talk. Yes, same time next week. In the meantime, we need to work on the dosage. Send me what you find out."

"Will do, Maria-full-of-grace."

She rolled her eyes at him, stepping through the door.

-0-

Shadow shifted from foot-to-foot, connecting the punching bag with a right hook, followed by an uppercut with the left.

Maria rushed in, setting down a load of disorganized papers and folders, repeating apologies breathlessly.

She noticed Eidola sitting nearby.

"DOLLY! You know better than to be in here!! What if Grandfather were to see you in the weight room?? You know the rules!"

Dolly frowned, sucking on a straw. "Sorry… I just like to watch…"

"Don't do it again. Shadow, you make sure it doesn't happen again, k? You're both responsible. Now, we have biology to get to. We're going to the medical lab."

Shadow gave one final brutal slug into the bag, then steadied it. "What's in the medical lab?"

Maria sighed, looking a little green. "You'll see when you get there."

-0-

Eidola was immediately apprehensive of the figure on the table, draped in a white sheet. Maria pulled a small cart to her as she stepped to the table, removed the blue cloth from the tray and began to arrange the deadly array of shiny cutting utensils.

Shadow rubbed his nose with disinterest, wondering at the odd smell in the room.

"Today, we will be dissecting an anthropomorphic cadaver. Now, I know it's morbid, and I'm going to ask you to be open-minded. I've done my share of these in the past and you need to learn the differences in anatomy and physiology. No better teacher than hands-on experience."

Shadow crossed his arms and hugged himself unthinkingly. Now he had chills. Dolly started to look a little green herself, both were dreading the lifting of that too-clean white sheet.

Maria took a small, shallow container, dipping a finger in and applying a smear of the white paste under each nostril. She handed it to the children for them to do the same.

The strong menthol stung Shadow's sensitive nose, but he was glad for it when Maria pulled back the sheet.

"Now, this cadaver is fresher than what we normally use for routine dissection, so they haven't gotten formaldehyde into it yet. As you can see, this was a male mink…"

Shadow gagged, then swallowed. Dolly pressed her hands forcefully to her mouth.

"Come on, guys. We're learning here. Step closer. Shadow, get that size three scalpel for me."

He swallowed his childish queasiness, straightening up and doing as told. Eidola hid her face as Maria made that ever-infamous y-shaped incision.

"Now that one that looks like a big pair of scissors." Maria held out the scalpel for him to take. He frowned at the scissors as he exchanged them for the scalpel. He thought it was odd that there was no blood on the scalpel blade.

His roseate eyes widened as he watched her take the huge scissors to the corpse's sternum, grunting as she closed the blades with a sickening wet smacking/cracking sound. He forced himself to remain calm, willed his stomach to keep its contents. He was a man. He could handle a little gore. Especially in the name of science.

But he had to admit, this was nothing like the simulations of combat….

Dolly had run out of the room some time ago. Maria just shook her head and let her go. She wasn't really required to learn this; she had just wanted to share the experience with her. Organs were fascinating.

Shadow leaned in as she parted the ribcage, using a smaller scalpel to get past the lungs and divide the cardial sac. He now listened with intense interest as she explained the respiratory system with this oh-so-helpful visual aid. He watched the blood as it trickled obediently down the drainage gutters and out of sight. It was dark red. Dark, not the usual vibrant red he found so appealing. Dead blood. Fascinating, nonetheless.

He was allowed to don rubber gloves in lieu of his cloth ones, and feel about the gastric organs for himself. He decided not to voice the odd tactile pleasure he got from handling the raw meat of one of his genetically-altered brethren.

Everything was explained during those four hours. Shadow felt relieved that so many questions could be answered at once without his having to ask. Of course males had no uterus! He had felt around for himself. He looked forward to examining the female cadaver the next day. He felt an odd tingling at the back of his neck when he caught himself thinking of seeing the corpse's bare breasts. He seethed with interest and anticipation. It was like dissecting an alien race.

"So… these," He gestured toward the netherparts of the corpse, "are strictly for reproduction?"

"Yes. That's where the… uh… 'genetic information' is stored. A female's genetic information is stored in her ovaries. I'll point those out to you tomorrow."

"So, you have ovaries?"

Maria blushed slightly. "Yes, Shadow. All females have them. Unless they've had them removed."

"Do they turn into males after that?"

Maria stifled the urge to laugh, as it was probably not something to laugh at. "No, Shadow. A woman's a woman, even without her ovaries."

Shadow looked off at nothing for a moment, blood smeared gloved hands still resting on the cadaver's exposed ribcage. He then thoughtfully looked down.

Maria knew what he was going to ask next.

"How is the genetic information passed, then? Do you take it out with a syringe?"

That, however, caught her a little by surprise.

"syringe?"

"yeah, and then combine them in a test tube. I heard about that."

Maria bit her lip, looking up and to the right.

"Shadow, take off those gloves. I'll have someone clean this up. We have to have a talk."

-0-

They sat on a bench out in the artificial sunshine, overlooking the gorgeous green of the atrium. Shadow looked at Maria impatiently.

"I don't know how to begin. I don't even think I'm supposed to be explaining this to you…" she gazed off toward her apartment, leaned forward and rested her forearms on her knees, hands clasped.

"What's so hard to explain?" Shadow's gaze was so innocent, so filled with impatience and the burning hunger for knowledge that only children and scientists can fully experience.

"OK… I'll just give you the facts. Would you like that?"

"Yes!" he barked, twirling a hand in the universal gesture for "get on with it, already!"

She sighed. "The male 'genetic information' is called sperm, and the female's is called eggs. Now, these aren't like chicken eggs, they're tiny. The size of the ballpoint of a pen at biggest. The eggs are stored in the ovary until the female undergoes ovulation. This is different- wait, don't interrupt me, you can ask questions when I'm done."

Shadow lowered his hand and folded them obediently, ears cocked forward.

"This is different for different species. We're talking about mammals in general right now, because birds, reptiles, insects, etc., have different ways about reproduction. For a human female… for me… we go into cycles. Menstrual cycles. We have ovulation and menstruation. Ovulation is where an egg travels down the philopian tube and settles in the uterus. The uterus will have a soft, spongy lining- the endometrium. This is where the sperm will meet the egg, and fertilization will take place. If it does, the egg will develop into an embryo, then into a fetus, and after an incubation period, it will be birthed. If fertilization doesn't happen, the endometrium and egg will leave the body. That's menstruation.  
"For most other mammals, though, the cycles are different. The female will go into a state called… 'in heat,' and won't necessarily have menstruation. There. Now you know."

Shadow frowned deeply, the corners of his mouth tipped comically downward in confusion and deep consideration. It was all greek to him, this sperms and egg business.

"But…. How does the sperm get ther-" Just then, Maria's beeper started sounding off with its shrill brays.  
"Another time, sweetie." She said, looking at the message on the device. "Grandfather's calling. I promise we'll get into that tomorrow, though. K?"

She patted his spiky head and rushed off.

Shadow slumped, his frown making him look almost cross-eyed. He scrunched his nose, considering all this. More questions invaded his thoughts, one of them concerning the relevance of breasts.

-0-

Eidola showed up later that evening, knocking on his door at the same time she did every night.

"s'open."

She let the door slide open, giving him a look of disquiet, obviously regarding the dissection of that afternoon.

"You're such a wimp. You missed the coolest thing ever."

"You're insane. That was beyond disgusting. I mean… that could have been one of us…"

"Psh! Come on. That was obviously the result of some experiment gone wrong. His heart felt really, like, solid. Maria even said that's not how it's supposed to be."

"'Felt??!!' you FELT it??"

"Yep. Blood was everywhere too. It was great. So squishy and slimy and-"

"Stop it! That's gross!"

"- and tomorrow I get to do it again." He grinned at her, eyes looking unusually evil.

Dolly crossed her arms over her small, budding breasts. "What for??"

"Oh, Maria said there are different organs- remember? Like we read?- for females and I get to look at those too. Like in the book only they make more sense now, y'know?"

Dolly frowned lightly and shook her head.

Shadow waved her off in dismissal. "Never mind, you missed out on the dissection, deal with it."

"Ugh! You're unbelievable."

He gave her a side glance, folding his arms with the thumbs up, resting against his headboard. "You wanna know what I found out?"

"Duh!"

He motioned for her to come closer with a finger.

She stepped over and leaned in. He whispered into her ear: "I made you come with a finger." And giggled.

She just looked at him blandly. "and what's that supposed to mean?"

"I dunno, I heard a lab tech say it and it sounded funny. The girl got really mad at him."

She just glared at him, arms crossed and foot tapping with impatience.

"Fine, fine… I'll tell you what Maria told me."

He was careful to quote her word-for-word, his mind uncannily agile with memory. When he was finished, Eidola looked about as puzzled as he had looked after hearing it himself.

"Ok… now where is your.. 'information' kept again? You got a hard drive up your ass or something?"

"Cute, Dolly. Real cute. It's not up my ass, genius. I guess it's…" he looked down. "it's just there, k?"

"These things?" she poked… at a rather sensitive patch of flesh.

Shadow squeaked, clamping his legs shut. "I thought we discussed the thing about touching without asking."

Dolly giggled. "Your hard drives are squishy."

Shadow was caught between annoyance and amusement, and gave in to a giggle himself.

Dolly sat on the bed next to him, continuing the digestion of information, if a little less seriously now. "So, mine are on the inside…. I wonder why…"

"Because of the uterus. Can't have THAT on the outside, I bet."

"Nope. That would look sick."

"Horror movie sick."

"hm."

More silent thought between them.

"so they must use syringes to get it out."

Shadow stopped her, holding up a finger. "I thought that too, but Maria says that's not the conventional way."

"So, what 'is' the conventional way?"

"That… she forgot to mention. I guess I'll learn about it tomorrow. I mean, what's so hard to explain about reproduction? It's not like I want another me right away or anything… I bet it really IS with syringes. Yeah. And they use test tubes like when we were created… and the other way is probably, like, painful or something so they stopped doing it that way when they discovered the technology."

He flopped back on the bed, resting his hands behind his head and looking thoughtfully to the ceiling. Dolly just looked at him, eyes wandering idly from the small spot of white fur that had sprouted recently at his clavicle…. to his chest, which had taken on considerable muscle in the past couple years… to his eight-pack abs…

On impulse, Dolly bit her lip, then slid on top of him, straddling his waist. Shadow looked up at her, blinking in mild amusement. "You pinning me, Doll?"

"Nope. Just sittin'"

"hn." He noticed the deep blush at her cheeks. "What's up with you?"

She looked away, fingering one of her ears. They felt abnormally hot… "nuthin'"

Shadow coughed a single, soft chuckle, grasping her by the waist, originally to lift her off… but he stopped.

Dolly looked down at him through wide, golden eyes, still playing idly with an ear. Something… something about this… odd… there was something… very intriguing about this position… but it made no sense. He noticed an increase in respiration, but he hadn't been doing anything to cause it. He felt… very warm… and she felt warm, too… under his touch. He removed his gloves and slid his hands to her waist again to make sure. Yes, she felt feverish. He slid a hand to her stomach, hoping she didn't have some sort of infection like that one lab tech got in his spleen. He palpated her abdomen, then slid his hand higher…

"What are you doing…?" she said this breathlessly… unthinkingly biting a finger.

"You feel hot. I'm checking to make sure nothing's swollen." (AN- LAWL)

She looked down as he felt around higher up her shirt, wondering after an odd sensation… lower…

"I think you better check yourself first, Shad."

"wh-"

She slid down to his thighs, exposing… a rather embarrassing development.

"… the hell?"

Dolly slid off the bed, tugging on her shirt. She felt uncomfortable. Itchy, almost. Anxious. Shadow sat up to examine… this new event.

"It's never done _that_ before…"

"You should get it looked at." Dolly shifted from foot to foot. Something needed to be done. She didn't know what her body expected that to be, but something…

Shadow covered himself with a pillow, blushing deep. "Don't tell anyone about this, k?"

She knew she should have advised he seek help immediately…. But there was that something again… some odd itch, whatever it was. She wanted to leave… and she wanted to stay…

"Maybe you should go…" he said, looking at a wall. He needed her gone. It was too awkward. He didn't want her seeing him like this. She'd… she'd think less of him… or something…

"k… tomorrow." She didn't bother to form the complete sentence; she just left, and hurried off with closed legs. The image had already burned itself in her mind… and she found it unnervingly fascinating… especially the little lines of red that ran up the length….

Shadow tossed the pillow aside, a hand to his forehead, staring at this stiff predicament.

"it'll go away…. Yeah… God….. why the hell…"

He knew it had something to do with Eidola. She had been feverish too. Maybe he caught something… he doubted it, in this sterile environment. He'd ask about it tomorrow, when they were discussing anatomy. He'd ask, and Maria would give him an answer. She always had the answer.

In the meantime…

He hesitantly touched the dark red node at the end, taking a breath at the sensitivity of it. It felt like a skinned knee… but… nice…

He closed his palm over the top, feeling it bob slightly upward in response. Very…. nice…. He looked around his room, as if expecting there to be someone watching… then guiltily, he began to softly massage that sensitive end, tilting his head back as that 'nice' feeling intensified…. Washed over him…. He felt a rising sensation, a rushing… he gasped, eyes popping open. The 'nice' became exquisite- surged through, then out of him like a wave crashing. He concluded that if something was seriously wrong, he didn't mind.

Then his ears lay back as he felt a wetness on his palm. He looked back down, discovering that whatever had caused his usually-unassuming appendage to go erect had dissipated… in the form of this white substance that was dribbling on the sheets.

(AN- I may be vulgar, but that's part of my job description, isn't it?)

And no matter what he did, he couldn't make it go stiff again. He gave up, deciding this was a one-time phenomenon, and lay back heavily. He was strangely tired. He wiped his hand carelessly on the sheet, making a mental note to have them changed in the morning.

((aaand end chapter.  
I had to be descriptive. You kids just eat that up, don't you? DON'T YOU? Don't lie, you love it. SAY MY NAME, BITCH!  
Ok, done. You can tell I'm ovulating. I'm focusing on phalli. And messiness. And, anyway, there's your first lemon in Sweet Reveries. THANK ME NOW.  
I'm going to get back to work now.))

Shadow: ….. damn. That's detailed.

Sonic:dies from the mental image::

Karpa:licks lips:: yummy.


	9. Lab Rat

((you must all thank STaR Productions for this chapter. If not for his/her repetitive bombing of reviews, I would not be writing this instead of working right now.  
I'll be honest, people. It's not easy writing fanfiction at my age with all the ridicule and pressures to write something meaningful. A metric ton of assorted things has happened since we last spoke: I found my other half, I moved into an apartment with my two birds, adopted two cats and became exceedingly poor (and fat uu but that's society's fault because fattening food is cheap and I work a desk job). :continues blaming external things for her misery:

Anyway, I've been catching up on my Steve like a madwoman, looking for some inspiration… and today I came to work and found a review for every chapter of SR in my inbox. This of course caused me to go back and read the whole thing myself to verify the statements of one STaR Productions. This needs to be finished. Maybe not Punch Drunk Love- that was what is known as a publicity stunt. I contracted no joy from the writing of it. This, however, has much promise.

Thusly, w/o further ado, I shall give you another chapter

Shadow: :puts on the oldies for her inspiration: let's shoot for more plot and less lemon this chapter, shall we?

Sonic: ZOMGWFTBBQ!!11!111ELEVENTYONE! HOW CAN YOU ASK THAT ARE YOU SECRETLY GAY YOU ARE ARENT YOU??QUESTIONMARK!

Sh: punctuation, Sonic. Use it. Lest you become another lolhedgie.

Knux: I can has grapes? Kthnxbai

&# I do not claim any ownership of Sonic or Shadow or anything else not of my divining. #&

**Chapter 9- Lab Rat**

Shadow's disappointment came the next day when he arrived at Maria's doorstep to find a note of apology taped to the door.

"Shadow,  
Sorry in advance, but something came up and I won't be available today. There's a crisis situation in sector 19 and I'll probably be on it all day and most of tonight. Just stick to the curriculum. Sorry about the dissection, we'll have to reschedule it, maybe next month.  
See you tomorrow, I hope.  
Maria"

Shadow swiped the note from the door, teeth clenched, grasping the paper at two edges with the intention of ripping it… then just held it, letting his rage out in a sigh. He folded the paper instead, tucking it into the back of his shoe. He didn't know exactly why.

He stepped inside, grabbed his books, and headed for a sunny patch on the atrium lawn.

-o-

Eidola had her own disappoint that morning.  
She woke not in her bed, but on an operation table. She blinked into the stinging overhead light, and frowned at the doctor. He had surgical gloves on, and peered at her over a nose/mouth mask.  
"What's…. what's going on, Doctor?"

He had been in the process of reaching for a scalpel when she asked this, and almost dropped it.

"Eidola, I would appreciate your silence during this procedure."

"Why didn't you wake me?"

"Silence, child."

She tried to get up, realized her arms and legs were strapped to the table. There were IVs buried in both arms, the center of her chest and stomach. She strained to see beyond and thought she saw tubes leading to her legs as well. She thought she could feel them attached to her head.

She looked in terror at the man she had considered a father, then at the gleaming scalpel, and she couldn't help but watch the shiny instrument pass through her exposed skin- he'd been considerate enough to shave her fur at that area- and she watched her blood spill to meet a waiting surgical sponge.

Her screams were not heard beyond the sound-proof walls. Her pleas were not heard by anyone but she, for Grandpa surely wasn't listening. Science is a needful goddess.  
She requires sacrifice.

-o-

Shadow went about his physical training with a strange sense of freedom. If he had looked for a word for it, it may have been "stolen freedom." "Undeserved," at least. He spent the remainder of his day skating.  
He thought it was strange that Dolly hadn't shown up at all. He was used to seeing her every day.  
Still… solitude was a nice thing, he thought. He grinned, a mischievous idea occurring to him. He set off to tear down the halls of ARK, wondering if he could make full circuit in ten minutes.

-o-

Maria sat down heavily on the cold floor, resting against a wall. Jordy and Junie, Maria's two best friends on this satellite, sat on either side of her.

"I honestly don't know what to make of this." Maria confessed, rubbing her tired face.

"There's a bug in the system. We just have to find it." Junie offered.

"Try fifty bugs and you might be closer to the truth, June." Jordy groaned and thumped his head against the wall.

The three sat in silence for a few moments, gazing at the row of computers, and the glass shield beyond them.

"What I still don't understand is what they need this monstrosity for anyway."

"It's an old project, don't you know, Mare. They're keeping it 'alive' for study."

"I hate it when you call me that, Junie. I am not a horse." Maria mumbled, resting her forehead on her knees.

"Well, ladies," Jordy started, rising. "Godzilla won't destroy Tokyo on his own. We have to get this reptile working."

"Where did Kordon and Mitchell go?" Maria asked.

"Don't you remember? They went on a dinner run. They said they'd bring enough for the crew. Don't ask me where Nigel is." Jordon started tapping studiously at a keyboard.

"Oh, I know exactly where Nigel is. Taking a nice long nap. He did have last night's shift, didn't he?"

"Aye, so he did, lassie."

The girls reluctantly resumed their stations. Chemical lights on the other side of the tempered glass shield flickered over the massive form of the "Bio-Lizard." Cords dangled lazily on either side of its scaly head as it slumbered.

-o-

Shadow had gone obediently to his room at bedtime, after discovering that he could not, in fact, skate the inner circumference of ARK in ten minutes. It had taken an hour because he had gotten lost.

He was reading from his calculus textbook when he heard a buzz at his door.

"c'min." he said without looking up, gnawing on a pencil.

He failed to notice Eidola was covered in bandages, failed to notice she was staggering to stay upright, and failed to notice she was crying. He only recognized her scent and bid her cheery greetings.

"Hey, Doll. Didn't see you all day today. What's up with that? You weren't too weirded-out by…"  
he finally looked up, after hearing her sob softly. He let the heavy book fall to the floor and rushed to her, catching her as she fell.

"God, Dolly…. What happened?? Tell me who did this, I'll kill him! I'll k-"

"It was Grandpa."

Shadow let his threat finish in exhalation. He held her bandaged head to his chest and rocked her gently. Tears stung at the backs of his eyes.

He very gently gathered her into his arms and carried her to his bed. He laid her out gingerly, fluffing the pillow for her poor head. Her poor beautiful head.

She looked up at him from bruised eyes. The blood loss she had suffered made her cheeks and lips deathly pale. He stroked her cheek, blinking rapidly to stop the tears. His mouth worked, and he had turn away.

"Shadow, no, stay..." she reached out weakly and tried to grab his arm. Her grasp was no stronger than a baby's, but it sent a quick, hot current up his arm. He recoiled, clutching at the effected area as if burnt.

She stared at her bandaged hand with wide eyes. She exhaled a shuddering breath, then began clawing at the bandages.

"Stop, Dolly, you'll hurt... yourse..." he saw blood on the bandages, but her hand was unscathed.

She looked up at him, eyes haunting. "it itches... and burns..." she motioned to her chest. He bent forward and tore away the bloodied rags there, seeing the stitched surgical wound slowly melding into smooth skin. He gave a stuttered breath of his own, and pulled at the suture. The thread unwound itself from her shaved flesh, and to his surprise the fur was growing back in its place.

But instead of the sandy tan, a crescent of black draped her sternum and clavicle like an organic necklace. She touched this new attribute of her physical appearance with helpless confusion and apprehensive terror.

"What did he do to you...?"

((end chappy nine! I have some extra time tonight, so i'm going to start the next chapter while the iron is hot. God I missed this.))


	10. Chaos Theory

((as promised, I'm starting this chapter in the same night I finished nine . Congratulate me! NAU.

Knux: erm... congrats, boss.

Watched a Star Trek movie with my darling (he's the epitome of nerdism- right down to the glasses and utility belt of 'puterphones- and he's gotten me into some nerdy things, you see.) and I have to admit: it's really not as stupid as some people think. But I'm a Piccard fan now, I'll have you know. Not the other guy. He's a lawyer now :P. And admittedly republican.

Wow, I got off topic fast. Anyway, if my cat, Ryu, can stop crawling on the keyboard and begging for lovin' for ten minutes, I can get this thing started.))

Chapter 10- The Chaos Theory

The two pubescent splicers spent most of that night in silence. Shadow finished unraveling her bloodied swaddling clothes of gauze, examining every inch of her in loving concern. The places where tubes had been connected were marked by nearly inconspicuous spots of gold glitter, winking through her rich red, tan and black coat of short fur. The only area that still bore any visible irritation from the good doctor's abuse was a bump in the center of her forehead.

Dolly looked up at him sorrowfully, finger tracing the new, noticeably softer fur in the black crescent on her chest. She drew a deep breath, and broke the fast of speech.

"I ran away."

Shadow looked at her, brow laden.

"You really don't have anywhere to run away to on a satellite, Eidola."

Her lip quivered.

"He'll come looking for me…. he'll find us together-"

"Let him."

He surprised her with this. Her lip quaked more violently, and a tear spilled down her puffy cheek as she sat up to take his hand.

"The next time I see him, he will breathe his last."

"No, Shadow. No. he's just doing his…. his…"

"His what, Dolly? His job?"

"It's for science, Sh-"

"EVERY GODDAMN THING THEY DO TO US IS IN THE NAME OF FUCKING SCIENCE!!" he shouted, voice breaking. Dolly had to yank her hand from his grip. She rubbed her sore knuckles, looking away and crying silently.

"You were right, Dolly. When you said 'that could have been one of us.' That _will_ be one of us someday. We're just a couple of future cadavers to autopsy for them. Maria's the only one who believes different, and even SHE does the same sick shit in the name of science that they do."

"Maria's different and you know that."

"She is, but she's not. Science is science is science. It's a religion and she's bound to it like the rest of them. What separates her are her morals. I don't want to talk about this anymore." He kicked his skate-shoes off and flopped onto his back on the bed with his arms crossed.

Dolly looked upon him lovingly, smoothing a handover his forehead and top quills. He closed his eyes and drew a breath. She scooted closer and lay down, resting her head on the soft cushion of fur on his chest. She pried his arms apart- they came away easily under her touch- and took his hand. He squeezed hers. He reached up to the headboard and flicked the light on the control panel there with his other hand.

As he drifted off to sleep, he whispered in half consciousness: "I love you, Dolly. I don't want them to… I won't let them hurt you…"

-o-

Maria trudged down her little stone walkway, half awake. She was distantly relieved that they had conquered the beast- well, fixed it anyway. Patched temporarily, at best. She was already dreaming in programming code. She was having minor hallucinations of tiny biolizards leaping and dancing at the corners of her eyes. She didn't care. She just wanted some sleep. Just as her hand touched the doorknob, a heavy hand dropped onto her shoulder, causing her to draw a gasp.

"Maria, please tell me, have you seen Project Eidola?" Gerald asked in a rush.

She turned and blinked at him in unrecognition for a few seconds, then rubbed at her eyes and yawned, shaking her head.

He exhaled a graveled sigh, wringing his age-spotted hands. "She's somehow gotten out… she was under observation after the first stage of an experiment," at this, Maria's eyes widened and her sinuses cleared. She was now fully awake. "and I just can't afford for her to be off somewhere without close supervision… I'm not quite sure what the ore will do…" he stopped himself. "Never mind. You absolutely wouldn't know where she could have gone?"

She shook her head solemnly. She knew where Dolly was. Knew exactly.

He sighed again, raking a hand over his barren skull. He turned and strode off without another word. Maria, giving a heavy sigh of her own, went inside to set her digital notepad on its charger. She needed desperately to sleep, but she had to find them, had to make sure she was alright.

-o-

There was a sudden electronic beep in the dark, causing Shadow to bolt upright and wake Dolly with a start. The door slid open and he leapt out of bed, setting his feet and taking stance.

Maria held up her hands defensively, then fumbled for the light. She flicked it on and Shadow relaxed. He sat heavily on the bed and Dolly lay back, relieved.

The door slid shut behind Maria, and she tucked her card key back into her lab coat pocket. "Shadow, listen to me for a minute."

"He hurt her."

"I know, but listen-"

"He did something to her and now she's different."

"Ok… Shadow, please…. Wait, different how?"

"She's…" he looked back at her. She had crawled under the covers in the night, and now she hesitantly pulled them back, revealing the crescent on her chest.

Maria wrapped an arm around her chest and set her fingers to her lips in silent distress.

"She was covered in bandages when she got here… and she had stitches in her chest."

"He cut me." Dolly added softly. "He cut me and put things inside me. There were tubes… tubes stuck everywhere…"

Maria covered her mouth and looked to the ceiling, tears welling.

"and the cuts all healed themselves. I watched it happen." Shadow finished.

Maria stood for a long time, deep in thought. She rocked on her feet subtly for a few minutes, then started removing her lab coat.

"Come here, Dolly. Put this on. I'm taking you back."

"No, Maria! We can't! he hurt her!"

"I know that Shadow, but he's the only one who can help her if something goes wrong,"

"He'll just hurt her some more!" he drew her into his arms and cradled her head against his shoulder protectively. She had begun to cry, and her tears seeped hotly into his fur. This, for some reason, caused tears to well in his own troubled eyes.

"Do you know what to do if she should have a grand mal seizure? Hm? Or if- God forbid- she should go into cardiac arrest? We don't even know what kind of side effects she could have from that procedure. He's the only one who has any understanding of what's going on inside her body right now."

Shadow squeezed her tightly to him, loathe to let her go. He hated to admit the truth, but he didn't want anything else to happen to his Dolly. She pushed him aside, leaving him to bury his face in his hands and weep. She let Maria drape the oversized coat around her, and took her hand.

Shadow looked up at them with bloodshot eyes. "I know." He drew a breath, looking around his room for a moment.

Maria knelt and took Eidola's hands. "He's going to want to know where you were. I'm going to tell him I found you in the jungle,"

"He's already looked there." Dolly interrupted.

Maria was puzzled. "How do you know that, Dolly?" she asked, squeezing her hands.

"I don't know. I just know. He's already looked there and most of the station. The only places he hasn't looked are sector 19 and your apartment."

Shadow looked up, brow furrowed.

Maria's mouth opened and closed as she frowned disbelievingly. She finally let it go (with the child's hands) and stood. "Fine, we'll tell him I found you at my apartment, then. I'll have to let him know about all your symptoms, so I'll just say I observed them myself. You can fill me in on anything else on the way."

Maria turned and looked upon her surrogate son with tenderness and regret. "It's for the best, Shadow. You know it. You'll see her again, sooner that you think."

Maria opened the door and led Dolly out. Shadow turned out the light and flopped onto his side in bed, letting the door close behind the two women in his life.

-o-

Gerald was so pleased to see his little experiment he could have hugged her. Maria was sure to inform him of her whereabouts and symptoms- itchiness and burning sensations in her chest, rapid healing, sporadic migraines. Nothing about exocognition. That was up for speculation anyway. If she had psychic abilities, though… that would make for some interesting research.

She left her in the doctor's hands, both dreading further experiments and relieved that she was enough of an asset to his research that he would at least save her from death if he could.

She also hoped silently that the children had remained innocent during their night together. They had, after all, both been naked… but she wouldn't let her mind go there. They were far too young. They knew nothing of adult tendencies yet. That was something to be thankful for. She took this comfort to bed with her and slept deeply the rest of that morning and afternoon.

-o-

A week passed without sight or word of or from Eidola. Shadow worried endlessly, but went about his days without showing it. He studied studiously and exercised with vigor. He did as he was told, and stifled the rage. For Maria. For his Dolly.

That is why the next time he saw Gerald, the old man did not breathe his last, as the young man had vowed.

"Shadow, I must apologize."

This took him by surprise, and cool heat rose in his chest. He knew about them, and he was going to tell him she was dead. That he had inadvertently killed her, so sorry. These things rushed through his mind as the doctor continued.

"… really should have conducted this experiment first, you see. I don't know why I didn't realize that, maybe I was too eager to move to the next step. Oh, no matter! Here you are and now we can get started!"

"…. Wait….. what?"

"The experiment, my good lad! The thing for which I summoned you here today!"

"I… I'm sorry, I misunderstood the first part of that."

"Which part is that? You mean the previous experiment? That's all well and good, but today we'll be exploring what really matters!"

He pressed a button and a counter slid away, allowing a display case to rise in its absence. Two large gems gleamed on their pedestals within. One was a shimmering obsidian-silver, and the other a sparkling amber-gold.

"Today I will teach you about Chaos Emeralds and their ores." said he.

((end another good chapter. CLIFFHANGERZ!!"


	11. Farewell

The Poe regretfully informs you that she is officially retiring from fan fiction (if not altogether, mainly Sonic fan fiction).

Yes, I'm sorry. I need to focus on original works. By the way, you may find them on fictionpress thusly: ht tp : / / www . fictionpress . com / u / 421903 / (remove spaces). If FFnet insists on screwing even that up, just look for aeyvithepoe.

I have already received notice from a couple fans who are happy to complete one story or another. Shoot me an email, a note, a tweet, or a comment on DA letting me know which story and please link me to your published work when a chapter is completed. I don't need to tell you to credit me, do I? I figured that was a given, since I struggled over this pulped crap for the worse part of five years.

Thank you for the reviews and your constant reading! I love you all, and I know I'll miss you. I probably won't miss the fan fiction for a few more years, though. Aeyvi's taking wing.

Contact info: (remove spaces, add "at" sign)  
email: aeyviallenpoe "at" hotmail . com  
twitter: ht tp : / / twitter . com / aeyviallenpoe  
deviantart: ht tp : / / aeyviallenpoe . deviantart . com /

PS- specifically for Sweet Reveries:  
This was perhaps my favorite fic to write... I would appreciate collaborating with whoever wants to finish this one. I know where this one was going to end. I also want the lemon to play out well... tasteful. It would sadden me greatly if it didn't end right.  
Thank you for your consideration.


End file.
